124,146 Shares in Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. $CMG Purchased by Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 124,146 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $4,221,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMG. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,417,475,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill during the 4th quarter worth $711,837,000. 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 valued at $5,349,764,000 after purchasing an additional 18,660,882 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew 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. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 206.4% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 14,062,158 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $520,300,000 after purchasing an additional 9,473,120 shares in the last quarter. 91.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Chipotle Mexican Grill News

Here are the key news stories impacting Chipotle Mexican Grill this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Chipotle launched a new “Every Win Tastes Better” promotion with tennis player Taylor Fritz, offering BOGO entrées after his U.S. Open victories. The campaign follows record redemptions from the company’s back-to-school promotion and could support restaurant traffic, digital engagement and near-term sales. Chipotle Taylor Fritz promotion
• Positive Sentiment: Investors remain encouraged by Chipotle’s digital initiatives, menu innovation and unit-expansion plans, which could provide longer-term revenue growth and help explain the stock’s recent strength. Chipotle growth outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: CMG continued to rise despite a Baird downgrade because the firm’s Neutral rating still carries a $40 price target, while recent momentum and promotional activity appear to be outweighing the more cautious analyst view. Chipotle stock gains after downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Baird lowered its rating to Neutral and cut its price target to $40 from $44, arguing that Chipotle may need to spend considerably more to generate slower sales growth. Rising labor, marketing and operating costs could pressure margins and limit valuation upside. Baird Chipotle downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Insider Matthew R. Bush sold 2,675 shares worth approximately $95,631, reducing his direct stake by 11.1%. The transaction may modestly weigh on sentiment, although one insider sale does not necessarily signal deteriorating business conditions. SEC insider filing

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CMG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $38.00 to $35.00 in a report on Friday, June 5th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $42.50 price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Twenty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.84.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Stock Performance

Chipotle Mexican Grill stock opened at $37.50 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $34.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.94. The company has a market cap of $47.45 billion, a PE ratio of 34.40, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.94. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $28.03 and a fifty-two week high of $43.13.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The restaurant operator reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.01. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a return on equity of 54.65% and a net margin of 11.43%.The business had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.33 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 1.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Matthew R. Bush sold 2,675 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.75, for a total value of $95,631.25. Following the sale, the insider owned 21,415 shares in the company, valued at $765,586.25. This represents a 11.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.