Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) Stock Price Up 1.8% – Should You Buy?

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG)’s stock price shot up 1.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $59.12 and last traded at $58.73. 2,096,522 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 13,929,507 shares. The stock had previously closed at $57.69.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CMG. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $68.00 to $66.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $64.47.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $79.79 billion, a PE ratio of 54.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.26. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $57.35 and its 200-day moving average is $81.28.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The restaurant operator reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.02. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a return on equity of 43.20% and a net margin of 13.51%. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.23 EPS. Chipotle Mexican Grill’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Chipotle Mexican Grill

In other news, insider Curtis E. Garner sold 15,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.02, for a total transaction of $866,565.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 473,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,052,740.28. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Chipotle Mexican Grill news, Director Robin S. Hickenlooper sold 1,790 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.38, for a total transaction of $100,920.20. Following the transaction, the director now owns 41,510 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,340,333.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Curtis E. Garner sold 15,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.02, for a total value of $866,565.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 473,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,052,740.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 33,290 shares of company stock valued at $1,866,023. 1.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chipotle Mexican Grill

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CMG. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 15.3% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 437 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,270,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group purchased a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 1st quarter valued at about $291,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 36.8% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 145 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $421,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC raised its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 3.4% in the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 990 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,878,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 27.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 344 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,000,000 after acquiring an additional 75 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.