Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 220,119 Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG)

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,441,818 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 220,119 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill were worth $810,542,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CMG. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 30,100,520 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,815,061,000 after purchasing an additional 6,853,470 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 1.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 28,080,978 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,612,682,000 after buying an additional 438,007 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Chipotle Mexican Grill by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 20,236,980 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,220,290,000 after acquiring an additional 166,767 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 4th quarter valued at $1,093,345,000. Finally, Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill in the 4th quarter worth $692,701,000. 91.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Price Performance

CMG stock opened at $49.91 on Monday. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. has a 12 month low of $47.55 and a 12 month high of $69.26. The company has a market cap of $67.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $53.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.57.

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.01. Chipotle Mexican Grill had a net margin of 13.56% and a return on equity of 42.92%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. will post 1.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on CMG. Loop Capital upgraded Chipotle Mexican Grill from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $58.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $63.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Chipotle Mexican Grill from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Chipotle Mexican Grill currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.67.

Chipotle Mexican Grill Profile

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.