Lazard Asset Management LLC Buys 173,894 Shares of Canadian National Railway Company $CNI

Key Points

• Lazard Asset Management increased its Canadian National Railway stake by 2%, buying 173,894 shares to hold 9.08 million shares valued at approximately $934.5 million, or 1.49% of the company.
• Institutional ownership remains high at 80.74%, with several other hedge funds—including Norges Bank and Fisher Asset Management—also adding or initiating positions.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $132.12. CN also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.915 per share, representing a 2.8% annualized yield.

Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR by 2.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,077,518 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 173,894 shares during the quarter. Canadian National Railway comprises about 1.5% of Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned 1.49% of Canadian National Railway worth $934,488,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Scharf Investments LLC bought a new stake in Canadian National Railway during the fourth quarter valued at $8,283,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Canadian National Railway by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,279,778 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $225,356,000 after acquiring an additional 216,963 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway in the 4th quarter valued at about $570,161,000. Clean Energy Transition LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway in the 4th quarter valued at about $47,268,000. Finally, QV Investors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. QV Investors Inc. now owns 629,069 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $62,299,000 after acquiring an additional 43,523 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.74% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CNI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $124.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Evercore raised shares of Canadian National Railway from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $124.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $113.88 to $117.36 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Stephens raised shares of Canadian National Railway to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $132.12.

Canadian National Railway News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Canadian National Railway this week:

• Positive Sentiment: CNI posted second-quarter earnings of $2.08 per share, well above the $1.39 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 11.3% year over year, signaling stronger operational performance. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its 2026 guidance and increased its volume outlook, which suggests management expects demand trends and network utilization to remain supportive. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: CN also announced a quarterly dividend of C$0.915 per share, reinforcing its capital-return profile for income-focused investors. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: CN and Union Pacific announced an agreement to improve North American rail connectivity, which could create new cross-border service opportunities and expand customer access. Article Title

Canadian National Railway Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE CNI opened at $129.53 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.97, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.96. Canadian National Railway Company has a one year low of $90.74 and a one year high of $131.55. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $120.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $110.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.49.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The transportation company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.11. Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 26.92% and a return on equity of 22.33%. The company had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.87 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Canadian National Railway Company will post 5.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 8th. Canadian National Railway's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.55%.

Canadian National Railway Profile

Canadian National Railway Company NYSE: CNI is a Class I freight railway that operates an integrated rail network across Canada and the United States. Headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, CN provides long-haul freight transportation and related logistics services that connect major ports, industrial centers and inland markets throughout North America. Its transcontinental system enables cross-border movement of goods and supports supply chains that span coast-to-coast in Canada and into the central and eastern United States.

CN's core business is the railborne transportation of a broad mix of commodities, including intermodal container traffic, forest and paper products, grain and other agricultural products, metallurgical and industrial products, petroleum and chemical products, coal and automotive shipments.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CNI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.