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What's in the Offing for El Pollo Loco (LOCO) Q4 Earnings?

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El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (LOCO - Free Report) is scheduled to report fourth-quarter 2019 results on Mar 5. In the last reported quarter, the company’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 11.1%.

Q4 Expectations

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter earnings is pegged at 15 cents, suggesting a decline of 6.3% from the year-ago quarter. Over the past 30 days, the company’s earnings estimates have been stable. For quarterly revenues, the consensus mark is pegged at $105.4 million, indicating a decline of 0.8% from the prior-year reported figure.

Factors Likely to Impact Q4 Results

Decline in revenues company-operated restaurant revenues is likely to have impacted the company’s fourth-quarter performance. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter revenues from company-operated restaurant is pegged at $93 million, suggesting decline of 1.8% from the year-ago reported figure. However, franchise revenues are likely to have improved 4.7% to $6.4 million.

The company’s relentless focus on providing excellent service and reasonable pricing, and its advertising campaigns has been aiding the fourth-quarter performance. Banking on menu innovation, limited-time offers and strong brand positioning are likely to have benefited the quarter to be reported.

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

What Does the Zacks Model Say

Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for El Pollo Loco Holdings this time around. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat. But that's not the case here.

You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

El Pollo Loco Holdings has a Zacks Rank #2 and an Earnings ESP of 0.00%.

Stocks Poised to Beat Earnings Estimates

Here are some other companies that investors may consider as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to post earnings beat this season:

Lululemon Athletica Inc. (LULU - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +0.27% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

G-III Apparel Group, LTD. (GIII - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +2.71% and a Zacks Rank #2.

Electronic Arts Inc. (EA - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +1.93% and a Zacks Rank #3.

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