Shares of Chipotle had their best day in more than four years. Despite the surge, the stock is still way off its all-time high of nearly $760. Jeff Bernstein, Senior Restaurant Analyst at Barclays, was with us to discuss whether the hiring of its new CEO will be enough to fuel a turnaround for Chipotle.
Chipotle tapped Taco Bell's CEO, Brian Niccols. Investors were on board with the move, sending shares soaring. Bernstein said it will take some time for consumers to jump on board. Chipotle is not a major media advertiser, so getting the new message across won't be immediate, the analyst adds.
During his time at Taco Bell, Mr. Niccol played a key role in bringing life back to the brand, bringing innovative food items to the menu. His marketing background helped get consumers excited about items such as Quesarito, Naked Chicken Chalupa and Nacho Fries. Bernstein said he expects to see some new product news at Chipotle, but acknowledges the assembly-line structure will keep them somewhat limited.
An independent watchdog within the IRS reports that while taxpayer services have vastly improved, the agency is still too slow to resolve identity theft cases. And National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins says those delays are “unconscionable.” Erin M. Collins said in the report released Wednesday that overall the 2024 filing season went smoothly, though IRS delays in resolving identity theft victim assistance cases are worsening. It took nearly 19 months to resolve self-reported identity theft cases as of January, and Wednesday's report states that now it takes 22 months to resolve these cases.
Amazon.com Inc. surpassed $2 trillion in market value for the first time in afternoon trading on Wednesday. The push higher for Amazon’s stock market valuation comes a little more than a week after Nvidia hit $3 trillion and briefly became the most valuable company on Wall Street. Nvidia’s chips are used to power many AI application and its valuation has soared as a result. Amazon has also been making big investments in AI as global interest has grown in the technology. Most of the company’s focus has been on business-focused products.
Climate change doesn’t just mean more extreme weather – it also leads to billions of dollars in lost productivity, tourism, and stresses infrastructure.
