Chipotle Linked To Different 'Rare' E. Coli In CDC Update

• Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. CMG were trading down more than 3.1 percent on Monday afternoon.
• The decline was triggered by a new CDC report that says that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is now investigating a different, more rare form of E. Coli linked to the fast-food chain.

Shares of Chipotle were tumbling on Monday afternoon, after the CDC released a new report titled “Multistate Outbreaks of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O26 Infections Linked to Chipotle Mexican Grill Restaurants.”

According to the report, one more case was reported –- from Pennsylvania -- since the organization's last update. This takes the case count to 53 ill people in nine different states.

However, the latest person did not report having eaten at Chipotle in the week before November 14, when illness started, the CDC document explained.

Rare DNA Fingerprint

Most interesting in the CDC’s report was information about the organism now investigating “another, more recent outbreak of a different, rare DNA fingerprint of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli O26 (STEC O26) linked to Chipotle Mexican Grill.”

The note highlighted three key issues to take into account:

• 5 ill people have been identified: on in Kansas, one in North Dakota (1), and three in Oklahoma.
• The outbreak started some time between November 19 and November 26.
• All of the infected people declared they had eaten at Chipotle Mexican Grill in the week before their ailments started.

Disclosure: Javier Hasse holds no positions in any of the securities mentioned above.