El Pollo Loco Holdings (LOCO) is a Great Momentum Stock: Should You Buy?

Core Viewpoint - Momentum investing focuses on following a stock's recent price trends, aiming for profitable trades as stocks continue in their established direction [1]. Company Overview: El Pollo Loco Holdings (LOCO) - El Pollo Loco Holdings currently holds a Momentum Style Score of B and a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy) [2]. - Stocks rated Zacks Rank 1 (Strong Buy) and 2 (Buy) with Style Scores of A or B have historically outperformed the market over the following month [2]. Momentum Analysis - LOCO shares have increased by 10.39% over the past week, significantly outperforming the Zacks Retail - Restaurants industry, which rose by 0.64% [3]. - Over the past month, LOCO's price change is 14.58%, compared to the industry's 1.17% [3]. - In the last quarter, LOCO shares have risen by 26.51%, and over the past year, they have gained 38.88%, while the S&P 500 has moved 5.31% and 28.61%, respectively [4]. Trading Volume - The average 20-day trading volume for LOCO is 290,067 shares, which serves as a bullish indicator when combined with rising stock prices [4]. Earnings Outlook - In the past two months, three earnings estimates for LOCO have been revised upwards, increasing the consensus estimate from $0.71 to $0.80 [5]. - For the next fiscal year, three estimates have also moved higher, with no downward revisions [5]. Conclusion - Given the positive momentum indicators and earnings outlook, LOCO is positioned as a 2 (Buy) stock with a Momentum Score of B, making it a potential candidate for near-term investment [6].