Investors Buy High Volume of Put Options on Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG)

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 105,887 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 35% compared to the average volume of 78,267 put options.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Trading Down 3.6%

Shares of NYSE CMG traded down $1.39 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $37.05. The company had a trading volume of 15,295,772 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,082,645. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $37.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.59. Chipotle Mexican Grill has a 52-week low of $29.75 and a 52-week high of $58.42. The stock has a market cap of $48.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.51, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.99.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a net margin of 12.88% and a return on equity of 47.99%. Chipotle Mexican Grill’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.25 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Chipotle Mexican Grill will post 1.29 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chipotle Mexican Grill

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CMG. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 667,848 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $24,710,000 after purchasing an additional 32,881 shares during the period. Prudent Man Advisors LLC lifted its position in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 23.0% during the fourth quarter. Prudent Man Advisors LLC now owns 23,692 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $877,000 after buying an additional 4,423 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 1,556,436 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $57,588,000 after buying an additional 118,404 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 179,565 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $6,644,000 after acquiring an additional 24,571 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP raised its stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 218.4% in the 4th quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 44,948 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,663,000 after acquiring an additional 30,830 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $58.00 to $40.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Citigroup upped their target price on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Argus reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Twenty-two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.24.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Company 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.