Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Lifted to Buy at Bank of America

Bank of America upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. Bank of America currently has $145.00 price objective on the transportation company's stock, up from their previous price objective of $140.00.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Citigroup boosted their target price on Canadian National Railway from $121.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $143.00 to $140.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Canadian National Railway in a research report on Monday. They set a hold rating and a $130.00 target price for the company. Stephens increased their price target on shares of Canadian National Railway from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, TD Securities downgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $146.95.

Canadian National Railway Price Performance

Shares of CNI traded up $0.32 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $131.31. 1,160,752 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,007,046. Canadian National Railway has a one year low of $103.96 and a one year high of $134.02. The firm has a market cap of $84.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.71, a PEG ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $129.53 and a 200-day moving average of $120.76.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.02. Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 33.38% and a return on equity of 23.56%. The business had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.25 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Canadian National Railway will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were given a $0.638 dividend. This is a boost from Canadian National Railway's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. This represents a $2.55 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Canadian National Railway's payout ratio is presently 39.59%.

Institutional Trading of Canadian National Railway

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CNI. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in Canadian National Railway by 33.5% during the 3rd quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 11,998 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,300,000 after purchasing an additional 3,011 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 5.0% during the third quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 4,602 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $498,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC lifted its stake in Canadian National Railway by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Manning & Napier Group LLC now owns 669,988 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $84,171,000 after acquiring an additional 46,517 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 7.3% in the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 5,575,661 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $604,011,000 after acquiring an additional 378,513 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in Canadian National Railway during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,266,000. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.