Jack in the Box Inc. (JACK), Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (CMG): The Mexican Market Matures

Regardless, the company is trying to keep costs down to drive net income up. Compared with last year, income has fallen sharply year to date, but that is due mainly to the cost of discontinued operations. At the operational level, income is up 13% and operating margin is 8.8% year to date, up from 7.7% over the same period last year.

While I think Fusaro’s original thesis is still playing out, it appears it’s going to take longer than he anticipated. For me, that’s not the end of the world. Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ:JACK) is still relatively cheap, trading at 24 times earnings while Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) is trading at 43. I still like the long term prospects for Jack in the Box, but the short-term jump may have already passed us by.

The article The Mexican Market Matures originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Andrew Marder has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends and owns shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill. 

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