Ascent Group LLC Makes New $318,000 Investment in Canadian National Railway Company $CNI

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC has made a new investment of approximately $318,000 in Canadian National Railway Company (CNI), purchasing 3,061 shares in the second quarter.
• Canadian National Railway recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6507 per share, marking an increase from the previous dividend of $0.62.
• The company's latest quarterly earnings report indicated EPS of $1.35, falling short of analysts' expectations of $1.37, with revenues down 1.3% year-over-year.

Ascent Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 3,061 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $318,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CNI. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new position in Canadian National Railway in the second quarter valued at approximately $310,489,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in Canadian National Railway by 37.3% during the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,296,701 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $518,260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,439,617 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Canadian National Railway during the 1st quarter worth $112,216,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 20.9% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,638,443 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $646,983,000 after purchasing an additional 1,148,569 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 39.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,664,618 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $259,694,000 after purchasing an additional 755,518 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.74% of the company's stock.

Canadian National Railway Price Performance

CNI opened at $96.87 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $60.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.63, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.96. Canadian National Railway Company has a 1-year low of $91.07 and a 1-year high of $116.79. The company has a 50-day moving average of $94.42 and a 200-day moving average of $99.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.82.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The transportation company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.02). Canadian National Railway had a return on equity of 21.71% and a net margin of 26.63%.The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.84 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Canadian National Railway Company will post 5.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Monday, September 8th were given a dividend of $0.6507 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 8th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from Canadian National Railway's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Canadian National Railway's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Canadian National Railway in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $124.00 to $123.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $106.00 to $102.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Canadian National Railway from $161.00 to $157.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $116.11.

Canadian National Railway 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.

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