Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) didn't hit the Street's expectations last quarter, but investors hope that it will rebound this quarter. The company will unveil its latest earnings on Thursday. Chipotle Mexican Grill develops and operates fast-casual, fresh Mexican food restaurants in 35 states throughout the United States and Ontario, Canada.

What analysts say:

  • Buy, sell, or hold?: Analysts think investors should stand pat on Chipotle Mexican Grill with 13 of 22 analysts rating it hold. Analysts don't like Chipotle Mexican Grill as much as competitor Panera Bread overall. Twelve out of 20 analysts rate Panera Bread a buy compared to seven of 22 for Chipotle Mexican Grill. Analysts still rate the stock a hold, but they are a bit more wary about it compared to three months ago.
  • Revenue forecasts: On average, analysts predict $582.8 million in revenue this quarter. That would represent a rise of 22.2% from the year-ago quarter.
  • Wall Street earnings expectations: The average analyst estimate is earnings of $1.85 per share. Estimates range from $1.74 to $2.

What our community says:
CAPS All-Stars are solidly backing the stock with 90.9% giving it an outperform rating. The community at large backs the All-Stars with 85.8% awarding it a rating of outperform. Fools are keen on Chipotle Mexican Grill and haven't been shy with their opinions lately, logging 1,247 posts in the past 30 days. Chipotle Mexican Grill's bearish CAPS rating of two out of five stars falls short of the Fool community sentiment.

Management:
Chipotle Mexican Grill's profit has risen year over year by an average of 29.6% over the past five quarters.

Now let's look at how efficient management is at running the business. Traditionally, margins represent the efficiency with which companies capture portions of sales dollars. The following table shows gross, operating, and net margins over the past four quarters.

Quarter

Q2

Q1

Q4

Q3

Gross Margin

25.8%

25.2%

25.9%

27.7%

Operating Margin

14.7%

14.7%

15.3%

16.3%

Net Margin

8.9%

9.1%

9.6%

10.1%

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The Motley Fool owns shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.