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

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is moderately bullish: Canadian National Railway has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with nine buy ratings and nine holds. The average 12-month price target is $137.40 versus the reported share price of $122.11.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: The company reported adjusted earnings of $1.50 per share, above the $1.39 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $3.35 billion and increased 11.3% year over year.
• Investors received a 3.0% dividend yield: CN announced a quarterly dividend of $0.915 per share, or $3.66 annualized. Institutional investors own approximately 80.74% of the company’s outstanding stock.

Shares of Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR have received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eighteen ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $137.3964.

CNI has been the topic of several analyst reports. Stephens raised shares of Canadian National Railway to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Canadian National Railway from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Canadian National Railway in a report on Monday, July 27th. Barclays upped their price target on Canadian National Railway from $109.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce increased their price target on Canadian National Railway from C$182.00 to C$185.00 and gave the company an "outperformer" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th.

Canadian National Railway Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE CNI opened at $122.11 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $125.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $116.76. The firm has a market cap of $73.89 billion, a PE ratio of 21.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.94. Canadian National Railway has a 1 year low of $90.74 and a 1 year high of $131.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.61.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The transportation company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 26.92% and a return on equity of 22.22%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.87 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Canadian National Railway will post 5.82 EPS for the current year.

Canadian National Railway Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a dividend of $0.915 per share. This represents a $3.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. Canadian National Railway's dividend payout ratio is currently 45.92%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CNI. Norges Bank bought a new position in Canadian National Railway during the 4th quarter valued at $570,161,000. Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in Canadian National Railway by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 8,998,101 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $889,462,000 after buying an additional 1,182,106 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 7,521.2% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,143,186 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $113,004,000 after buying an additional 1,128,186 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 27.9% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 4,481,206 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $442,967,000 after buying an additional 976,324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway in the 4th quarter worth approximately $76,586,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.74% of the company's stock.

Canadian National Railway Company Profile

Canadian National Railway Company NYSE: CNI is a transportation and logistics company that operates a major freight railway network across Canada and the United States. Its rail system connects the Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf coasts with major industrial centers, ports and distribution markets, supporting trade across North America.

CN transports a diverse range of products, including grain and fertilizers, coal and minerals, forest products, petroleum and chemicals, metals, automotive goods, and consumer and manufactured products.

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