Stifel Nicolaus Lowers Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) Price Target to $68.00

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) had its target price dropped by equities research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $70.00 to $68.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently 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 previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens reduced their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Barclays dropped their target price on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $63.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $66.31.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Price Performance

NYSE:CMG traded down $1.30 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $57.72. 15,101,604 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,007,486. Chipotle Mexican Grill has a twelve month low of $47.98 and a twelve month high of $69.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $60.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.84.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.01. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a return on equity of 43.20% and a net margin of 13.51%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Chipotle Mexican Grill will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chipotle Mexican Grill

In related news, insider Laurie Schalow sold 4,404 shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.01, for a total transaction of $286,304.04. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 185,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,078,337.92. The trade was a 2.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CMG. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in 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 3rd 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 period. Congress Asset Management Co. acquired a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $109,396,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 674.3% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 2,122,778 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $122,314,000 after buying an additional 1,848,625 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,441,172 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.31% of the company’s stock.

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.