Chipotle (CMG)

Chipotle's superb 2020 performance amid a challenging backdrop was due to the successful business transformation led by CEO Brian Niccol and his team. Improved digital access, which has been a pillar of management's transformation strategy and a growing sales driver in recent years, enabled the company to serve customers with digital pickup and delivery as the pandemic began. Only three months after the onset of COVID-19 in the U.S., Chipotle returned to growth, achieving same-store sales growth of 6% in Q4, or 20% over two years.

The pandemic accelerated a shift in the company's digital sales mix from

The stock of Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE:CMG, 30-year Financials) appears to be significantly overvalued, according to GuruFocus Value calculation. GuruFocus Value is GuruFocus' estimate of the fair value at which the stock should be traded. It is calculated based on the historical multiples that the stock has traded at, the past business growth and analyst estimates of future business performance. If the price of a stock is significantly above the GF Value Line, it is overvalued and its future return is likely to be poor. On the other hand, if it is significantly below the GF Value Line,

In 2014, Bill Ackman (Trades, Portfolio) made one of the biggest mistakes of his career. He started buying shares in the healthcare company Valeant (now named Bausch Health Companies Inc. (BHC)).

The investor and manager was incredibly enthusiastic about the group's business model and CEO, Michael Pearson. Pearson, it seemed, had managed to pioneer the perfect business model. Valeant would acquire pharmaceutical businesses with vast amounts of debt and then slash costs and research and development spending to maximize cash flow after the deal.

The big mistake

Initially, the strategy worked, but then the company came under

This stock has been on our radar since its initial public offering last year, which made headlines when its shares soared 188% on its first trading day but ended up below its debut price of 0.65 Hong Kong dollars (0.08 cents).

As an investor in Asia, Snack Empire Holdings Ltd. (HKSE:01843) quickly gained our interest because its business, Shihlin Taiwan Street Snacks, sells its signature fried chicken and other popular Taiwanese street snacks in both Singapore and Malaysia.

Founded in 2003, the restaurant chain opened its first store in Singapore and has since expanded into more than 230 outlets and

Jim Simons (Trades, Portfolio), founder of Renaissance Technologies LLC, has released his firm's portfolio for the fourth quarter. The top trades during the quarter included major reductions in Zoom Video Communications Inc. (ZM), Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMY), Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) and AbbVie Inc. (ABBV) as well as a new buy in Nvidia Corp. (NVDA).

Renaissance Technologies is a quantitative investment management company that trades in global financial markets. The company is dedicated to adhering to mathematical and statistical methods. Investments are made using a computer algorithm and trades are conducted for

Yum China Holdings Inc. (YUMC) is a good franchise selling at a discount on Wall Street, according to Quo Vadis Capital President John Zolidis.

Last week, the operator of KFC, Pizza Hut and other fast-food brands in China reported fourth-quarter earnings of 35 cents per share that beat analysts' expectations of 24 cents per share.

But it warned of "significant headwinds" in the first quarter of 2021 due to a Covid-19 resurgence in some areas of China.

Wall Street took this warning seriously, sending the company's shares on a roller coaster following the report.

Still, Zolidis thinks Yum China is

On Tuesday, Chipotle (CMG) reported results for the fourth quarter and full year of fiscal 2020.

Revenues in the quarter increased 12% to $1.4 billion, attributable to 6% growth in units (ending the year with 2,768 locations) and a 6% increase in comparable store sales (comps).

Considering that the company's operations are still being materially impacted by the pandemic, with 40% of dining rooms closed (and the others only offering limited seating), that's an impressive result. Comp store sales in the fourth quarter benefited from an increase in average ticket due to customer adoption of premium offerings like carne asada

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) released its fourth-quarter 2020 results after the market closed on Feb. 2. While company's earnings did not meet Refinitiv's consensus estimates, revenue matched expectations.

Shares dropped nearly 4% in after-hours trading following the announcement.

By the numbers

The Newport Beach, California-based burrito chain posted adjusted earnings of $3.48 per share in the fourth quarter, up 21.7% compared to the prior-year quarter. Revenue of $1.61 billion surged 11.6% on a year-over-year basis due strong restaurant comps as well as new restaurant openings. This was partially offset by a slowdown in overseas sales. Analysts had predicted earnings

After the markets closed on Feb. 2, Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) reported earnings results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2020.

Although the company continued its breakneck growth pace and met revenue expectations, it fell short of what analysts had predicted for earnings and comparable store sales, causing the stock to stumble in after-hours trading.

Earnings overview

In full-year 2020, GAAP earnings per share came in at $12.52 while adjusted earnings were $10.73 per share. Revenue was $6 billion, a 7.1% decrease from full-year 2019. Digital sales grew 174.1% and accounted for 46.2% of sales, with comps

In light of buffet pizza chain Cici's Pizza filing for bankruptcy, four restaurant stocks that have high financial strength and have outperformed the Standard & Poor's 500 Index benchmark over the past 12 months are Chuy's Holdings Inc. (CHUY), Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG), Texas Roadhouse Inc. (TXRH) and Yum China Holdings Inc. (YUMC) according to the All-in-One Screener, a Premium feature of GuruFocus.

Buffet pizza chain files for bankruptcy as pandemic accelerates business decline

According to CNBC, the Irving, Texas-based buffet pizza chain reported on Monday in its Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filings that the company had

Billionaire investor Bill Ackman (Trades, Portfolio) disclosed late last week he boosted Pershing Square Capital Management's stake in The Howard Hughes Corp. (HHC) by 23.37%.

The guru's New York-based hedge fund is known for taking large positions in a handful of underperforming companies and pushing for change in order to unlock value for shareholders. While he has found success recently with Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) and Starbucks Corp. (SBUX), one of Ackman's most well-known activist targets, which did not end well for him, was Valeant Pharmaceuticals. He also pursued an unsuccessful short of Herbalife Nutrition Ltd.

Bill Ackman (Trades, Portfolio) has revealed another reduction in his holding of Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) according to GuruFocus' Real-Time Picks, a Premium feature.

The guru's New York-based hedge fund takes large positions in underperforming companies with the intent of pushing management to make changes. This activist strategy allows the hedge fund to unlock value for shareholders.

On Jan. 5, Ackman sold 75,096 shares to reduce the Chipotle holding by 6.47%. On the day of the transaction, the shares sold for an average price of $1,339.15 each. Overall, the trade had an impact

Renowned value investor Mohnish Pabrai (Trades, Portfolio) recently gave a lecture for the Fall 2020 Value Investing Course at Peking University's Guanghua School of Management. During the lecture, Pabrai shared his insights on how to spot 10 to 100-baggers, which he calls the holy grail of investing. Pabrai also held a question-and-answer session after the lecture in which he answered questions from students and sit-in audience. Below are my notes from the lecture part.

Choices for value investors

As a value investor, you can buy two kinds of businesses. The first kind of business offers you 10

Seven months ago, in mid-March, I published an article in which I shared my thoughts on the state of financial markets. On the day I wrote it (March 18), markets had fallen by nearly 5% in the days session, and were down more roughly 30% from their highs a month earlier. While it was a chaotic time in the markets and in the world around us, I thought the appropriate course of action for an investor was to stay calm and remain focused on the long-term:

"Personally, despite "losing" more money – by far – than I ever

Bill Ackman (Trades, Portfolio), leader of Pershing Square Capital Management, has revealed his portfolio for the third quarter.

The guru's New York-based hedge fund takes large positions in underperforming companies with the intent of pushing management to make changes. This activist strategy allows the hedge fund to unlock value for shareholders.

Portfolio overview

At the end of the quarter, the portfolio contained seven stocks, with no new additions. Overall, it is valued at $8.82 billion and it has seen a turnover rate of zero percent. Top holdings at the end of the quarter include Lowe's Companies

On Wednesday, Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) reported results for the third quarter of fiscal 2020. The company returned to growth in the third quarter, with revenues up 14% to $1.6 billion. Growth in the quarter was driven by a combination of higher same-store sales (up 8%) as well as a mid-single-digit increase in the company's footprint (up 6% year over year to 2,710 locations).

As shown below, after a difficult point in the second quarter as the company navigated through the heart of the pandemic, Chipotle has returned to two-year stacked comps well into the double digits.