BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Lowers Stock Holdings in Canadian National Railway Company $CNI

Key Points

• BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp reduced its stake in Canadian National Railway (CNI) by 15.8%, selling 173,460 shares and holding approximately 926,064 shares valued at $90,134,000.
• The company recently declared an increased quarterly dividend of $0.6507 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.7%, reflecting the firm's commitment to returning value to shareholders.
• Wall Street analysts have varying views on CNI, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a price target averaging $118.36, showing some optimism despite recent reductions in price targets by major firms.

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lowered its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR by 15.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 926,064 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 173,460 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp owned 0.15% of Canadian National Railway worth $90,134,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of CNI. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 55.8% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,296 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $538,000 after acquiring an additional 1,896 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,211,222 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $122,948,000 after buying an additional 31,752 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 21.7% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 307,762 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $31,229,000 after buying an additional 54,903 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 33.6% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,489,874 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $557,278,000 after buying an additional 1,380,554 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. increased its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 33.3% in the fourth quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 90,640 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $9,201,000 after buying an additional 22,640 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.74% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Argus raised Canadian National Railway to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. 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 report on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Canadian National Railway in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised Canadian National Railway from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Canadian National Railway from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $118.36.

Canadian National Railway Price Performance

Shares of Canadian National Railway stock traded down $1.27 during trading on Thursday, hitting $95.98. 1,201,649 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,504,456. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. Canadian National Railway Company has a fifty-two week low of $91.65 and a fifty-two week high of $121.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $98.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $100.09.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The transportation company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Canadian National Railway Company will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a $0.6507 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 8th. This is an increase from Canadian National Railway's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Canadian National Railway's dividend payout ratio is presently 49.81%.

About Canadian National Railway

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.