El Pollo Loco Authorized to Repurchase Up to $40M in Shares

El Pollo Loco said on Thursday it can now repurchase up to $40 million of its common stock, which is about 9% of its current market cap. 

Shares jumped 9% to $15.23 apiece during midday trading the following day with a market cap of $461 million (Nasdaq: LOCO). The stock is up about 48% year-to-date.  

“Our Board’s approval of a new share repurchase program reflects our strong balance sheet, with less than one times leverage, and confidence in our future outlook as we accelerate our unit growth cadence and, by extension, our EBITDA growth in the coming years,” Chief Executive Liz Williams said in a statement.  

Costa Mesa-based El Pollo Loco operates more than 500 restaurants in the U.S. It is Orange County’s fifth largest restaurant chain with annual systemwide sales of $1.1 billion.