The investment firm upgraded the fast-casual restaurant's rating to outperform from perform, with a price target of $1,925.
Chipotle was also one of the "top picks" for 2022, along with Wendy's (WEN) and Papa John's International (PZZA), Oppenheimer said.
The company's pricing power, which is the ability to change product price without affecting the demand, "buoys our restaurant margin expansion forecasts over the next two years, despite the industry's inflation headwinds" and "elevates our confidence in near-term [same-store sales] performance relative to consensus, particularly for [the first half of 2022]," said Oppenheimer Analyst Brian Bittner.
The investment firm projects margins of 27% to 28% on an average unit volume of $3 million as the company exits 2023. It also expects the company's earnings per share to grow 30% in 2022 and 2023 and sustain a more than 20% growth afterward.
"We believe same-store sale drivers remain powerful as digital, loyalty, marketing, innovation all hold further upside," Bittner added.
Oppenheimer anticipates Chipotle same-store sales upside to the Wall Street consensus of 7%.
Price: 1601.19, Change: -19.78, Percent Change: -1.22