Van ECK Associates Corp Buys 5,224,833 Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. $CMG

Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) by 1,330.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,617,629 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,224,833 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 0.43% of Chipotle Mexican Grill worth $207,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CMG. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Wealth Watch Advisors INC bought a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp grew its position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 106.7% in the 3rd quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp now owns 775 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Winthrop Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Ankerstar Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 91.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on CMG shares. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $37.00 price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Stephens upped their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upped their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Twenty-four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.48.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Stock Up 3.0%

NYSE CMG opened at $32.20 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $41.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.99. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.03 and a 12-month high of $58.42. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $32.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $35.19.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The restaurant operator reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24. The firm had revenue of $3.09 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a net margin of 11.96% and a return on equity of 49.64%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 1.13 EPS for the current year.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Profile

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.