Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) Shares Gap Up on Analyst Upgrade

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Tuesday after Argus raised their price target on the stock from $3,668.00 to $3,888.00. The stock had previously closed at $3,365.46, but opened at $3,435.00. Argus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Chipotle Mexican Grill shares last traded at $3,390.21, with a volume of 69,436 shares.

CMG has been the subject of a number of other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $3,400.00 to $3,600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Barclays raised their target price on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $2,400.00 to $2,865.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Citigroup upped their price target on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $3,358.00 to $3,369.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $3,285.00 to $3,300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $3,010.00 to $3,050.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Chipotle Mexican Grill has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,201.19.

Insider Activity

In other Chipotle Mexican Grill news, insider Roger E. Theodoredis sold 2,509 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,164.44, for a total transaction of $7,939,579.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,433,417.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Chipotle Mexican Grill news, insider Roger E. Theodoredis sold 2,509 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,164.44, for a total value of $7,939,579.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,433,417.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brian R. Niccol sold 6,406 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,185.92, for a total value of $20,409,003.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,669 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $72,221,620.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 11,015 shares of company stock worth $35,023,769. Corporate insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chipotle Mexican Grill

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Byrne Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 11.8% during the first quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 38 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the period. Evermay Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 231 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $528,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Peloton Wealth Strategists boosted its stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Peloton Wealth Strategists now owns 1,451 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,318,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 19.0% in the 1st quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 25 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversified Trust Co grew its position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 474 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,378,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. 91.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $3,121.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2,732.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.25.

Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill are going to split on Wednesday, June 26th. The 50-1 split was announced on Tuesday, March 19th. The newly issued shares will be distributed to shareholders after the closing bell on Tuesday, June 25th.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The restaurant operator reported $13.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.63 by $1.74. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a return on equity of 43.74% and a net margin of 12.70%. The company had revenue of $2.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.67 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 55.31 EPS for the current year.

About Chipotle Mexican Grill

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurants. It sells food and beverages through offering burritos, burrito bowls, quesadillas, tacos, and salads. The company also provides delivery and related services its app and website. It has operations in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom.