JPMorgan analyst John Ivankoe upgraded Chipotle Mexican Grill to Overweight from Neutral and raised his price target for the shares to $510 from $465. The stock closed yesterday down 35c to $444.27. Chipotle's same-store-sales are set to sequentially improve from their bottom in Q1, which will allow investors to focus on earnings recoverability, Ivankoe tells investors in a research note. The analyst expects the company's earnings in its fiscal year 2017 to be very close to its fiscal year 2014 earnings. This shows that the food safety crisis caused three full years of lost earnings despite stores over the time period rising to 2,483 from 1,785, Ivankoe points out. His upgrade centers on Chipotle being a "highly meaningful brand" that can regain customer trust with time. The analyst expects normal earnings growth to resume by fiscal year 2018 and believes 20%-plus growth can be sustained through at least fiscal year 2020.

Raymond James analyst Brian Vaccaro raised the firm's price target on Chipotle (CMG) to $3,300 from $3,200 and keeps an Outperform rating on the shares. The firm maintains a selective stance towards its restaurant coverage universe as industry sales have underwhelmed in recent months, causing Raymond James to increasingly favor stocks it view as having "idiosyncratic factors trading at attractive valuations," such as Brinker (EAT), Shake Shack (SHAK), First Watch (FWRG) and Bloomin' Brands (BLMN), the analyst tells investors in a group earnings preview note.

Chipotle Mexican Grill announced the opening of its first location in Kuwait City in partnership with leading international franchise retail operator Alshaya Group. The restaurant has been operating with adjusted hours since the beginning of the month to account for holidays and training and will hold its official grand opening on April 23. Chipotle's location in Kuwait marks the first time the company has entered a new country in over 10 years. The new restaurant is located at The Avenues, Kuwait's largest shopping mall and a hub for international and local brands with over 1,100 stores and approximately one million visitors per week.