Chipotle Stock Price Will Continue to Plummet

The Chipotle stock price is up 0.48% in early afternoon trading today (Wednesday), slightly rallying after a potential new strain of E. coli has sickened individuals in North Dakota, Kansas, and Oklahoma.

But Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) has yet to identify the exact source for the original E. coli outbreaks, and it's the reason we know that this Chipotle stock rally won't last…

Since the store closings in Portland, Ore., and Washington state, where the outbreak was first reported, patrons of Chipotle in Maryland, California, Illinois, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania have also contracted the bacteria.

And Chipotle customers are now taking action against the company…

State health officials announced on Dec. 8 that 120 students at Boston College reported illnesses after eating at Chipotle. It turns out that the students didn't have E. coli, but they did contract a fast-spreading airborne bug known as norovirus, which causes gastrointestinal distress, according to TODAY News.

The mother of one of the sickened patrons filed a lawsuit against the company on Dec. 16, according to Business Insider.

In the lawsuit, the mother is seeking compensation for her son's pain, injuries, and disruption of daily life.

The Associated Press reported that Chipotle is taking new steps to prevent future outbreaks:

• Dipping onions in boiling water before the onions are chopped
• Marinating raw chicken in resealable bags rather than in bowls
• Adding cilantro to freshly cooked rice so the heat removes microbes from the cilantro

But this isn't enough to stabilize the CMG stock price. Chipotle is not only losing customers because of the outbreaks, but it's also losing money every time it has to close a store.

You see, the history of other companies in similars position suggests the Chipotle stock price will continue to plummet into 2016.