Blair William & Co. IL Trims Holdings in Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI)

Key Points

• Blair William & Co. IL reduced its stake in Canadian National Railway Company by 6.2%, ending the quarter with 45,904 shares valued at approximately $4.47 million.
• Several hedge funds have shown mixed activity, with Shell Asset Management Co. increasing its holdings by 0.5%, while others like Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted their positions significantly by 44.2%.
• Canadian National Railway recently announced a dividend increase to $0.6507 per share, which translates to an annualized dividend of $2.60 and a yield of 2.8%.

Blair William & Co. IL trimmed its position in Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR by 6.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 45,904 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 3,010 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL's holdings in Canadian National Railway were worth $4,474,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 3,186,189 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $308,925,000 after acquiring an additional 173,331 shares during the last quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new stake in Canadian National Railway during the 1st quarter worth approximately $143,000. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 0.7% in the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 2,777,564 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $270,334,000 after purchasing an additional 20,534 shares during the last quarter. Forge First Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 29.7% in the first quarter. Forge First Asset Management Inc. now owns 229,300 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $22,345,000 after purchasing an additional 52,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 1.3% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 69,430 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $6,767,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares in the last quarter. 80.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Canadian National Railway Stock Performance

NYSE CNI traded up $0.09 on Friday, hitting $92.58. 933,704 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,482,953. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.82. The business's fifty day moving average is $101.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $101.03. Canadian National Railway Company has a 12 month low of $91.65 and a 12 month high of $121.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.80, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.94.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last issued 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 net margin of 26.63% and a return on equity of 21.71%. The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Canadian National Railway Company will post 5.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a $0.6507 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. This is a positive change from Canadian National Railway's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Canadian National Railway's dividend payout ratio is 49.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. National Bank Financial downgraded Canadian National Railway from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Argus raised shares of Canadian National Railway to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $161.00 to $157.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Canadian National Railway in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $118.36.

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.