Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) Trading 0.5% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 0.5% during trading on Thursday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $2,900.00 to $3,400.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Chipotle Mexican Grill traded as high as $2,989.19 and last traded at $2,980.00. Approximately 64,318 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 230,429 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2,965.69.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on CMG. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and issued a $2,900.00 price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $2,600.00 to $2,800.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $2,700.00 to $2,920.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $2,650.00 price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $1,930.00 to $2,226.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $2,702.22.

Insider Activity at Chipotle Mexican Grill

In related news, insider Christopher W. Brandt sold 3,149 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,927.84, for a total value of $9,219,768.16. Following the sale, the insider now owns 8,563 shares of the company's stock, valued at $25,071,093.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Roger E. Theodoredis sold 898 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,622.25, for a total value of $2,354,780.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,529 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,009,420.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christopher W. Brandt sold 3,149 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,927.84, for a total transaction of $9,219,768.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,071,093.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 6,793 shares of company stock valued at $18,321,152 over the last quarter. 0.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Chipotle Mexican Grill

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMG. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill during the fourth quarter worth about $805,529,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 220,249.6% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 301,879 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $6,903,850,000 after buying an additional 301,742 shares during the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill during the fourth quarter worth about $248,604,000. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 65.8% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 375,736 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $521,332,000 after buying an additional 149,115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 41.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 397,182 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $727,570,000 after buying an additional 116,723 shares during the last quarter. 91.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $82.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.43, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.28. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $2,740.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2,340.77.

Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill are set to split before the market opens on Wednesday, June 26th. The 50-1 split was announced on Tuesday, March 19th. The newly minted shares will be payable to shareholders after the closing bell on Tuesday, June 25th.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The restaurant operator reported $10.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $9.73 by $0.63. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a net margin of 12.45% and a return on equity of 44.41%. The company had revenue of $2.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $8.29 earnings per share. Chipotle Mexican Grill's quarterly revenue was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 53.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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.