Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI) Position Increased by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR by 3.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 94,400 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 3,400 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Canadian National Railway were worth $9,185,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 44.2% during the first quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 346 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. CX Institutional purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway during the first quarter worth $39,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in Canadian National Railway in the fourth quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC increased its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 1,020.0% in the fourth quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 560 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 510 shares during the last quarter. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Argus raised Canadian National Railway to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Canadian National Railway from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Canadian National Railway from $120.00 to $110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Canadian National Railway from $119.00 to $114.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Canadian National Railway from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $120.86.

Canadian National Railway Stock Performance

CNI traded down $2.62 during trading on Friday, reaching $99.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,743,357 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,423,417. Canadian National Railway Company has a 52-week low of $91.65 and a 52-week high of $122.19. The company's fifty day moving average price is $104.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.68. The company has a market capitalization of $62.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.62.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The transportation company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.03. Canadian National Railway had a return on equity of 22.29% and a net margin of 26.19%. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.72 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Canadian National Railway Company will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were paid a $0.8875 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 9th. This is a positive change from Canadian National Railway's previous dividend of $0.29. Canadian National Railway's dividend payout ratio is 50.49%.

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.