Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the twenty ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $125.18.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CNI. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Canadian National Railway in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Canadian National Railway from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $125.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $116.00 target price on shares of Canadian National Railway in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Canadian National Railway from $120.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th.

Canadian National Railway Price Performance

CNI stock opened at $110.79 on Friday. Canadian National Railway has a 52 week low of $107.54 and a 52 week high of $134.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $114.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $118.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The transportation company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.02. Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 31.65% and a return on equity of 23.62%. The company had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Canadian National Railway will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be given a $0.6108 dividend. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Canadian National Railway

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. King Luther Capital Management Corp increased its position in Canadian National Railway by 2.3% during the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 8,932 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,046,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Scheer Rowlett & Associates Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 17.7% during the 3rd quarter. Scheer Rowlett & Associates Investment Management Ltd. now owns 494,511 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $57,900,000 after buying an additional 74,278 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 6,060 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $710,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 41.8% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,644 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,130,000 after acquiring an additional 2,845 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its position in Canadian National Railway by 5.4% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 3,962,972 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $464,002,000 after acquiring an additional 202,303 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.74% of the company’s stock.

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.