Stifel Nicolaus Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) Stock Price

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) had its price target dropped by Stifel Nicolaus from $70.00 to $68.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective points to a potential upside of 17.81% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on CMG. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $66.00 to $64.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Cfra upgraded shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $59.00 to $73.00 in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.31.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Trading Down 2.2 %

CMG stock traded down $1.30 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $57.72. 15,101,604 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,007,486. Chipotle Mexican Grill has a 1-year low of $47.98 and a 1-year high of $69.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.65 billion, a PE ratio of 53.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.84.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a net margin of 13.51% and a return on equity of 43.20%. As a group, research analysts expect that Chipotle Mexican Grill will post 1.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chipotle Mexican Grill

In other news, insider Laurie Schalow sold 4,404 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.01, for a total transaction of $286,304.04. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 185,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,078,337.92. This represents a 2.32 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMG. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill during the 4th quarter worth $692,701,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 1,087.9% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,712,724 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $271,547,000 after purchasing an additional 4,315,983 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $109,396,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 674.3% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 2,122,778 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $122,314,000 after purchasing an additional 1,848,625 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 94.3% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,969,776 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $171,118,000 after purchasing an additional 1,441,172 shares during the last quarter. 91.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Company Profile

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.