Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. $CMG Shares Sold by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 22.4%, selling 28,403 shares during the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Cloud Capital Management LLC and HighMark Wealth Management LLC, acquired new stakes or increased their holdings in Chipotle during the same period.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed outlooks on the stock, with price targets ranging from $53.00 to $65.00 and an average rating of "Moderate Buy."

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG - Free Report) by 22.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 98,278 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 28,403 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill were worth $4,935,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill in the first quarter worth about $25,000. HighMark Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 173.4% in the 1st quarter. HighMark Wealth Management LLC now owns 585 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. North Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Mechanics Financial Corp acquired a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on CMG shares. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Raymond James Financial cut their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $60.00 to $56.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 15th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $65.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Chipotle Mexican Grill currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.22.

Insider Buying and Selling at Chipotle Mexican Grill

In other news, insider Roger E. Theodoredis sold 113,875 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.70, for a total value of $5,659,587.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 109,815 shares in the company, valued at $5,457,805.50. This represents a 50.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.81% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Trading Down 0.6%

CMG stock opened at $42.39 on Friday. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. has a one year low of $41.18 and a one year high of $66.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.84 billion, a PE ratio of 37.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $48.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.21.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The restaurant operator reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.11 billion. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a net margin of 13.32% and a return on equity of 43.50%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.34 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Chipotle Mexican Grill 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.

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