El Pollo Loco Holdings Inc. Dividend Analysis

No. El Pollo Loco Holdings (LOCO) does not currently pay a dividend. The last payment in our data was in 2022, and nothing has been paid since.

Through share buybacks rather than dividends. Over the last twelve months El Pollo Loco Holdings reduced its share count at a rate equivalent to a 0.4% buyback yield. A buyback returns value by shrinking the share count, so each remaining share owns more of the business, but unlike a dividend it pays you nothing in cash and can be stopped at any time without an announcement.

On the numbers, yes. El Pollo Loco Holdings generated $41 million of free cash flow, which is about $1.36 per share. If it paid out half of that, the dividend would be roughly $0.68 per share, a yield of about 4.1% at the current price. That is an illustration of capacity, not a prediction: the company has given no indication it intends to pay one.

Our Consumer Discretionary sector page ranks the companies we cover by dividend score, which combines payout safety, free cash flow coverage and growth record. If income is what you are after, start there rather than with El Pollo Loco Holdings.