Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $124.19.

CNI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $123.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Barclays cut their price objective on Canadian National Railway from $121.00 to $112.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Citigroup raised Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. TD Securities upgraded Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $174.00 to $171.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st.

Institutional Trading of Canadian National Railway

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CNI. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. acquired a new stake in Canadian National Railway during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 738.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 260 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the period. Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Canadian National Railway in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Canadian National Railway Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE:CNI opened at $103.98 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.91. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $102.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $109.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.66. Canadian National Railway has a 52 week low of $98.69 and a 52 week high of $134.02.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.39 by ($0.09). Canadian National Railway had a return on equity of 22.48% and a net margin of 26.09%. On average, research analysts forecast that Canadian National Railway will post 5.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.6159 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.37%. This is an increase from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.66%.

Canadian National Railway Company Profile

Canadian National Railway Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the rail, intermodal, trucking, and marine transportation and logistics business in Canada and the United States. The company provides rail services, which include equipment, custom brokerage services, transloading and distribution, business development and real estate, and private car storage services; and intermodal services, such as temperature controlled cargo, port partnerships, and logistics parks.