Chipotle's Conference Call Leaves Nomura Sidelined As Shift Continues Away From Food Safety

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE: CMG) hosted a conference call Tuesday to discuss ongoing and new operational changes, along with the earlier announced departure of co-CEO Monty Moran.

Nomura’s Mark Kalinowski maintains a Neutral rating on the company, with a price target of $333.

Reversing Complexity

“Management's prepared remarks centered on the need to improve the guest experience, in part by reversing the complexity that had been introduced to four main areas: hiring, training, restaurateur development, and measures of team success,” Kalinowski mentioned.

The analyst noted that this was a clear shift in focus away from food safety, which management believes has been completely integrated “into the DNA” of Chipotle Mexican Grill’s daily activities.

Management also commented that the steps required to strip away the layers of complexity were unlikely to lead to large investments in terms of capital or expense.

“While that should be well received, management stopped short of estimating when sales figures might see a benefit from the operational improvements (some of which can be implemented immediately),” Kalinowski added.

At last check in Wednesday's pre-market session, shares of Chipotle were up 0.74 percent at $380.