Is LOCO options pricing rich or cheap right now?

As of Oct 13, 2026, El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (LOCO) ATM IV is 330.0% against 20-day realized volatility of 24.6%. IV rank is 69.1%. LOCO options are pricing in more volatility than the stock has recently realized: a positive variance risk premium worth 305.4 vol points.

What is the LOCO variance risk premium?

The variance risk premium is the persistent gap between implied and subsequently realized volatility. In equity markets it averages positive because option sellers demand compensation for bearing variance shocks. LOCO is currently priced consistently with this premium, which is one input to whether short-vol or long-vol structures carry their typical edge.

What does LOCO IV rank mean for strategy selection?

IV rank normalizes the current ATM IV to its 1-year range: 0% is the low, 100% is the high. LOCO's current rank of 69.1% signals where current pricing sits in its own 1-year history. High-rank regimes typically favor premium-selling structures (credit spreads, condors, covered calls); low-rank regimes typically favor premium-buying or long-volatility structures.

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (LOCO) IV/HV History

Comparing implied volatility to historical (realized) volatility reveals whether options are priced rich or cheap relative to actual price movement. Persistent gaps can signal trading opportunities.

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (LOCO) operates in the Consumer Cyclical sector, specifically the Restaurants industry, with a market capitalization near $481.8M, listed on NASDAQ, employing roughly 4,034 people, carrying a beta of 0.67 to the broader market. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. Led by Elizabeth Goodwin Williams, public since 2014-07-25.

Snapshot as of Oct 13, 2026.

Spot Price: $15.75
ATM IV: 330.0%
HV 20-Day: 24.6%
HV 60-Day: 34.3%
IV Rank: 69.1%
IV Percentile: 94.0%

As of Oct 13, 2026, El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (LOCO) ATM implied volatility is 330.0%. 20-day realized volatility is 24.6%, producing an IV-HV spread of +305.4 vol points. Options are pricing in more volatility than the stock has recently delivered, the volatility risk premium. IV rank is 69.1%.

How LOCO iv/hv history Data Feeds Strategy Selection

Strategy selection on El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. options does not derive from any single metric in isolation. The iv/hv history view above sits inside a broader read: ATM IV currently sits at 330.0% and dealer gamma exposure is positive, so dealer hedging is mechanically mean-reverting. Combine the iv/hv history data here with the volatility-skew surface, dealer-gamma exposure, max-pain level, and upcoming-events calendar to build a positioning thesis. Risk-defined structures (credit spreads, debit spreads, iron condors) are usually safer than naked positions while the regime is uncertain; the data on this page anchors the inputs but does not by itself constitute a trade thesis.

How to read the LOCO IV vs HV chart

The dual-line chart below tracks ATM implied volatility (forward-looking, what the chain is pricing) against 20-day realized historical volatility (backward-looking, what actually happened). ATM IV currently prints at 330.0%, 69.1% IV rank, against 24.6% realized over the trailing 20 trading days. Implied is pricing above realized by 305.4 vol points, the typical variance-risk-premium positive state in which premium sellers earn the gap. Persistent IV-above-HV is the variance-risk-premium-positive state typical of equity markets; persistent IV-below-HV is rare and usually marks underpriced vol that often expands.

LOCO IV/HV regimes and trade selection

LOCO IV rank at 69.1% sits mid-range - no structural edge from rank alone. Strategy choice should follow event calendar and the dealer-positioning read.

Using LOCO vol history alongside the term structure

The IV/HV gap on this page captures the level of premium; the term-structure slope on the volatility page captures its shape across expirations. Backwardation (negative slope -0.073) indicates acute near-term event risk - near-dated tenors price disproportionate vol. Pair the rank read with the slope read with the event calendar to choose the right tenor for the structure.

LOCO IV/HV signal in volatility-cycle context

Equity-vol cycles tend to compress and expand on multi-month timeframes: a typical sequence runs low-IV-rank consolidation (months of flat tape, decaying premium) into a vol-expansion catalyst (earnings miss, macro shock, regime change) into elevated-IV-rank stress (premiums fat, dispersion high) back to mean-reverting compression. LOCO's 69.1% IV rank places the ticker in the mid-range of its 1-year window - no strong cycle-position signal. The ratio of HV-20 (24.6%) to HV-60 (34.3%) gives a second cycle indicator: when 20-day exceeds 60-day, recent realization is running hotter than the trailing-quarter average - typically a sign that recent days have already started expanding vol regardless of where IV rank prints. Use the time series below to spot inflection points: meaningful IV/HV gap closures and openings tend to precede regime shifts by a few sessions.

Learn how implied vs realized volatility is reported and how to read the data →

Daily ATM implied volatility and 20-day realized (historical) volatility for LOCO over the last ~30 trading days. The IV-HV gap measures the variance risk premium - when IV trades persistently above realized HV, premium-sellers earn the spread; when IV dips below HV, vol is structurally underpriced.

Daily values from end-of-day option_ticker_snapshots. Series sparse on illiquid tickers reflects gaps in the upstream end-of-day options data feed.

Most recent 15 trading days (descending). Older history appears in the chart above.

Date	ATM IV	HV 20d	HV 60d	IV Rank
Oct 13, 2026	330.0%	24.6%	34.3%	69.1%
Oct 12, 2026	406.4%	28.7%	34.0%	85.6%
Oct 9, 2026	441.1%	28.5%	33.9%	93.1%
Oct 8, 2026	292.4%	28.1%	33.8%	61.0%
Oct 7, 2026	337.2%	26.3%	33.2%	70.7%
Oct 6, 2026	391.4%	25.9%	33.1%	82.4%
Oct 5, 2026	400.2%	26.3%	33.1%	84.3%
Oct 2, 2026	403.2%	27.5%	33.6%	84.9%
Oct 1, 2026	473.3%	28.0%	33.4%	100.0%
Sep 30, 2026	391.3%	29.6%	33.3%	82.4%
Sep 29, 2026	377.2%	29.3%	33.5%	79.3%
Sep 28, 2026	460.4%	25.8%	33.1%	97.3%
Sep 25, 2026	213.0%	25.3%	33.3%	44.0%
Sep 24, 2026	438.5%	26.6%	33.6%	92.6%
Sep 23, 2026	423.1%	26.7%	33.6%	89.2%

Frequently asked LOCO iv/hv history questions

Is LOCO options pricing rich or cheap right now?: As of Oct 13, 2026, El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (LOCO) ATM IV is 330.0% against 20-day realized volatility of 24.6%. IV rank is 69.1%. LOCO options are pricing in more volatility than the stock has recently realized: a positive variance risk premium worth 305.4 vol points.
What is the LOCO variance risk premium?: The variance risk premium is the persistent gap between implied and subsequently realized volatility. In equity markets it averages positive because option sellers demand compensation for bearing variance shocks. LOCO is currently priced consistently with this premium, which is one input to whether short-vol or long-vol structures carry their typical edge.
What does LOCO IV rank mean for strategy selection?: IV rank normalizes the current ATM IV to its 1-year range: 0% is the low, 100% is the high. LOCO's current rank of 69.1% signals where current pricing sits in its own 1-year history. High-rank regimes typically favor premium-selling structures (credit spreads, condors, covered calls); low-rank regimes typically favor premium-buying or long-volatility structures.