U.S. stocks were higher, with the Dow Jones index gaining around 300 points on Friday.



Shares of El Pollo LoCo Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:LOCO) rose sharply during Friday's session after the company reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter financial results.



El Pollo Loco reported quarterly earnings of 25 cents per share which beat the analyst consensus estimate of 20 cents per share. The company reported quarterly sales of $123.515 million which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $122.783 million.



Also, Benchmark upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy.



El Pollo LoCo shares jumped 17.6% to $12.79 on Friday.



Here are some other big stocks recording gains in today’s session.



<ul>
<li>VEON Ltd (NASDAQ:VEON) shares jumped 20.1% to $53.23 after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly sales results and issued FY26 sales guidance above estimates.</li>



<li>Kyivstar Group Ltd (NASDAQ:KYIV) gained 15% to $11.72 after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly financial results.</li>



<li>Karat Packaging Inc (NASDAQ:KRT) surged 13.5% to $25.32 following strong quarterly results.</li>



<li>Himax Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:HIMX) gained 12.5% to $11.44.</li>



<li>Nanobiotix SA – ADR (NASDAQ:NBTX) gained 12% to $35.30.</li>



<li>American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) gained 11.7% to $53.16 following upbeat quarterly earnings.</li>



<li>Bed Bath &amp; Beyond Inc (NYSE:BBBY) rose 9.2% to $5.03.</li>



<li>Terawulf Inc (NASDAQ:WULF) jumped 9% to $15.98.</li>



<li>Bitdeer Technologies Group (NASDAQ:BTDR) gained 8.6% to $7.97.</li>



<li>Immunitybio Inc (NASDAQ:IBRX) surged 8.5% to $8.49.</li>



<li>Allogene Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:ALLO) gained 8.3% to $2.68 following quarterly results.</li>



<li>Cipher Digital Inc (NASDAQ:CIFR) surged 8.2% to $14.84.</li>



<li>Klarna Group PLC (NYSE:KLAR) rose 8.1% to $15.81 after the company announced that Board Chair Michael Moritz acquired 3.47 million shares for $50 million.</li>



<li>Tower Semiconductor Ltd (NASDAQ:TSEM) gained 8.1% to $128.16.</li>



<li>Klarna Group PLC (NYSE:KLAR) gained 7.8% to $15.76 after the company announced that Board Chair Michael Moritz acquired 3.47 million shares for $50 million.</li>



<li>AXT Inc (NASDAQ:AXTI) gained 7.7% to $50.33.</li>
</ul>



Photo via Shutterstock

APEI

VEON

.DJI

KYIV

GXTG

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LOCO

U.S. stocks rose on Friday, with the Dow Jones gaining 300 points. El Pollo Loco Holdings saw a significant 17.6% increase in shares after reporting better-than-expected Q4 results, with earnings of 25 cents per share and sales of $123.515 million. Benchmark upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy. Other notable gainers included VEON Ltd (+20.1%), Kyivstar Group (+15%), and American Public Education (+11.7%).

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EL Pollo Loco

El Pollo Loco Posts Upbeat Q4 Results, Joins Kyivstar Group, American Public Education And Other Big Stocks Moving Higher On Friday