Royal Bank Of Canada Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) Stock Price

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) had its price target dropped by stock analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada from $50.00 to $45.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s target price indicates a potential upside of 24.73% from the company’s current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $44.00 to $40.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $45.00 to $42.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.13.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of NYSE:CMG opened at $36.08 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $46.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.66, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.06. Chipotle Mexican Grill has a 52 week low of $29.75 and a 52 week high of $58.42. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $35.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.40.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.01. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 47.99%. The company had revenue of $2.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.25 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Chipotle Mexican Grill will post 1.29 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chipotle Mexican Grill

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CMG. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 144,588,220 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $5,349,764,000 after acquiring an additional 18,660,882 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 101,688,010 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,762,457,000 after purchasing an additional 13,843,222 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 58,447,867 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,162,572,000 after purchasing an additional 9,237,720 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 45,294,212 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,675,895,000 after buying an additional 6,796,285 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 4th quarter worth about $711,837,000. 91.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Chipotle Mexican Grill

Chipotle Mexican Grill is a fast-casual restaurant company known for its Mexican-inspired menu of burritos, bowls, tacos and salads. Founded in 1993 by Steve Ells, the chain emphasizes fresh, customizable meals made from a limited menu of core ingredients and a focus on ingredient quality. Chipotle operates primarily company-owned restaurants and offers dine-in, takeout, catering and delivery through its own digital platforms and third-party partners.

The company is headquartered in Newport Beach, California, and traces its roots to Denver, Colorado.