Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Outlook for CNI Earnings

Key Points

• Zacks Research turned more cautious on Canadian National Railway, trimming its Q2 2026 EPS estimate to $1.38 from $1.40 and lowering several other near- and longer-term profit forecasts.
• The company’s most recent quarter matched expectations, with EPS of $1.31 and revenue of $3.15 billion, though revenue slipped 0.5% year over year from the prior period.
• Despite the mixed outlook, CNI’s stock was trading near its 52-week high, and the company will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.915 per share on June 30, implying an annualized yield of about 3.3%.

Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR - Research analysts at Zacks Research decreased their Q2 2026 earnings estimates for shares of Canadian National Railway in a research report issued on Wednesday, May 13th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the transportation company will post earnings of $1.38 per share for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $1.40. The consensus estimate for Canadian National Railway's current full-year earnings is $5.76 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Canadian National Railway's Q3 2026 earnings at $1.45 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.57 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $5.71 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.60 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $1.54 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $1.55 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $1.66 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $6.35 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $1.65 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $6.84 EPS.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The transportation company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31. The business had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.15 billion. Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 27.22% and a return on equity of 21.90%. The firm's revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.85 earnings per share.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on CNI. Stephens decreased their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Canadian National Railway from $160.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Canadian National Railway from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Canadian National Railway from $113.88 to $117.36 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Canadian National Railway in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Canadian National Railway presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $122.04.

Canadian National Railway Stock Performance

Shares of CNI opened at $112.46 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $68.34 billion, a PE ratio of 20.45, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.67. The company's 50 day moving average price is $107.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $102.28. Canadian National Railway has a 52 week low of $90.74 and a 52 week high of $115.80.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Canadian National Railway

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway during the 1st quarter worth about $311,000. Focus Partners Wealth raised its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 11,514 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,122,000 after acquiring an additional 1,146 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. bought a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $202,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 52.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,118 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Canadian National Railway by 2.9% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 17,094 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,778,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares during the period. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Canadian National Railway Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.915 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 9th. This represents a $3.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Canadian National Railway's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.55%.

More Canadian National Railway News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Canadian National Railway will have Executive Vice-President and Chief Commercial Officer Janet Drysdale speak at the Wolfe Research Global Transportation & Industrials Conference on May 21, which may help keep investor focus on the company’s strategy and outlook. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its FY2026 EPS estimate to $5.71 from $5.67, suggesting slightly better expectations for the current fiscal year, though the new figure still sits just below the consensus estimate of $5.76.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research lowered multiple near-term profit forecasts for Canadian National Railway, including Q2 2026 EPS to $1.38 from $1.40, Q3 2026 to $1.45 from $1.43, and Q4 2026 to $1.57 from $1.54, indicating softer expected operating performance.
• Negative Sentiment: The firm also cut FY2027 EPS to $6.35 from $6.51, FY2028 EPS to $6.84 from $6.91, and reduced several 2027 quarterly estimates, which could weigh on sentiment around longer-term earnings growth for CNI.

Canadian National Railway Company 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.

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