El Pollo Loco Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: LOCO) CEO Bernard Acoca was upbeat in providing the Costa Mesa’s chain’s quarterly results.
The company’s fiscal third quarter ended Sept. 23 saw the chain’s same-store sales turn positive, up 1.8%, with growth in both the company-owned and franchised channels.
Acoca said the pandemic “will likely continue to present challenges” but the company’s made progress on its growth plans as off-premise, such as drive-thru and delivery, help drive the business.
The company ended the September quarter with net sales of $111 million, compared to $112.1 million in the year-ago period. Analysts on average expected revenue of $112.2 million.
The company reported earnings of $9.9 million, up from $6.4 million and beating consensus estimates of $7.8 million.
El Pollo Loco currently has more than 475 locations with a market cap of $632 million. The company’s shares were trading down 3.4% to $17.60 in after-hours trading Thursday.
