Short Interest in Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) Grows By 6.2%

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 27,250,000 shares, an increase of 6.2% from the November 30th total of 25,660,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 9,200,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Curtis E. Garner sold 15,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.05, for a total value of $898,537.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 457,764 shares in the company, valued at $26,115,436.20. This trade represents a 3.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Laurie Schalow sold 4,404 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.01, for a total value of $286,304.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 185,792 shares in the company, valued at $12,078,337.92. The trade was a 2.32 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chipotle Mexican Grill

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Archer Investment Corp acquired a new stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group increased its holdings in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 4,900.0% in the 2nd quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 400 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 5,525.0% during the second quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 450 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ZRC Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 384.0% in the third quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 484 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. 91.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on CMG shares. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Chipotle Mexican Grill currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.55.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Price Performance

CMG opened at $60.30 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $60.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.94. Chipotle Mexican Grill has a 12 month low of $44.08 and a 12 month high of $69.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.12, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.27.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The restaurant operator reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.02. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a return on equity of 43.20% and a net margin of 13.51%. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.23 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Chipotle Mexican Grill will post 1.11 earnings per share for the current 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.