CMG Stock Alert: Chipotle splits its shares today

Chipotle (NYSE:CMG) will conduct one of the largest stock splits in U.S. history after the market closes today. After the restaurant chain completed the 50:1 split of CMG stock today, the shares will change hands tomorrow at their new, significantly lower price.

CMG shares: A large split makes the shares more accessible

Chipotle said its split was one of the largest in the history of New York Stock Exchange. The burrito maker seems to be referring to the fact that the 50:1 ratio is very large. Due to the latter ratio, the owners of the stock will receive 50 shares for each share they currently own and the stock price will drop to about 2% of its current value. This means that the stock price will fall from its current level of around $3,215 to between $64 and $65.

The change will allow more retail investors to more easily purchase CMG shares. Bloomberg pointed out that retail investors can now buy fractional shares, I found that not every trading platform allows such transactions.

Chipotle also reported that the split will allow it to more easily award stock to its employees. In conjunction with the move, the company announced that it would award stock to all restaurant managers and “employees with more than 20 years of service.”

The company, which allows about 40% of its employees to buy Chipotle shares at discounted prices, said it could not award fractional shares to its employees.

Other large companies conduct stock splits

Other companies planning a stock split this year are Booking stocks (NASDAQ:BKNG), Broadcom (NASDAQ:AVGO), Autozone (NYSE:AZO), And O’Reilly Automobiles (NASDAQ:ORLY).

At the time of publication, Larry Ramer did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and are subject to InvestorPlace.com’s disclosure policies.