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Canadian National Railway (CNI) Stock Forecast & Price Target

Canadian National Railway logo
$117.08 +1.33 (+1.15%)
As of 03:15 PM Eastern
This is a fair market value price provided by Massive. Learn more.

Canadian National Railway - Analysts' Recommendations and Stock Price Forecast (2026)

Consensus Rating

Sell
0
Hold
9
Buy
9

Based on 18 Wall Street analysts who have issued ratings for Canadian National Railway in the last 12 months, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy." Out of the 18 analysts, 9 have given a hold rating, and 9 have given a buy rating for CNI.

Consensus Price Target

$137.49
17.43% Upside
According to the 18 analysts' twelve-month price targets for Canadian National Railway, the average price target is $137.49. The highest price target for CNI is $205.00, while the lowest price target for CNI is $100.00. The average price target represents a forecasted upside of 17.43% from the current price of $117.08.
MarketBeat calculates consensus analyst ratings for stocks using the most recent rating from each Wall Street analyst that has rated a stock within the last twelve months. Each analyst's rating is normalized to a standardized rating score of 1 (sell), 2 (hold), 3 (buy) or 4 (strong buy). Analyst consensus ratings scores are calculated using the mean average of the number of normalized sell, hold, buy and strong buy ratings from Wall Street analysts. Each stock's consensus analyst rating is derived from its calculated consensus ratings score (0 to .5 = Strong Sell, .5 to 1 = Sell, 1 to 1.5 = Reduce, 1.5 to 2.5 = Hold, 2.5 to 3.0 = Moderate Buy, 3.0 to 3.5 = Buy, >3.5 = Strong Buy). MarketBeat's consensus price targets are a mean average of the most recent available price targets set by each analyst that has set a price target for the stock in the last twelve months. MarketBeat's consensus ratings and consensus price targets may differ from those calculated by other firms due to differences in methodology and available data.
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CNI Analyst Ratings Over Time

TypeCurrent Forecast
10/8/25 to 10/8/26
1 Month Ago
9/8/25 to 9/8/26
3 Months Ago
7/10/25 to 7/10/26
1 Year Ago
10/8/24 to 10/8/25
Strong Buy
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2 Strong Buy rating(s)
Buy
9 Buy rating(s)
9 Buy rating(s)
10 Buy rating(s)
7 Buy rating(s)
Hold
9 Hold rating(s)
9 Hold rating(s)
8 Hold rating(s)
10 Hold rating(s)
Sell
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Sell rating(s)
2 Sell rating(s)
Consensus Price Target$137.49$137.40$129.94$116.11
Forecasted Upside17.43% Upside11.89% Upside4.41% Upside20.48% Upside
Consensus RatingModerate BuyModerate BuyModerate BuyHold

CNI Analyst Recommendations By Month

The chart below shows how a company's ratings by analysts have changed over time. Each bar represents the previous year of ratings for that month. Within each bar, the sell ratings are shown in red, the hold ratings are shown in yellow, the buy ratings are shown in green, and the strong buy ratings are shown in dark green.
Skip Chart & View Analyst Rating History

CNI Price Targets by Month

The chart below shows how a company's share price and consensus price target have changed over time. The dark blue line represents the company's actual price. The lighter blue line represents the stock's consensus price target. The even lighter blue range in the background of the two lines represents the low price target and the high price target for each stock.
Skip Chart and View Analyst Price Target HistorySkip Chart & View Price History Table

Canadian National Railway Stock vs. The Competition

TypeCanadian National RailwayIndustrials CompaniesBroader Market
Consensus Rating Score
2.50
2.31
2.52
Consensus RatingModerate BuyHoldModerate Buy
Predicted Upside18.87% Upside118.04% Upside20.58% Upside
News Sentiment Rating
Neutral News

See Recent CNI News
Neutral News
Neutral News
Report Date
0 Results
DateBrokerageAnalystActionRatingPrice TargetReport Date
Upside/Downside
Details
10/7/2026
Citigroup Inc. logo
Citigroup
4 of 5 stars
Ariel Rosa
5 of 5 stars
Lower TargetBuy$151.00 ➝ $143.00+23.29%
10/2/2026
Susquehanna logo
Susquehanna
4 of 5 stars
Bascome Majors
Bascome Majors
4 of 5 stars
Lower TargetNeutral$142.00 ➝ $130.00+10.91%
9/23/2026
Bank of America Corporation logo
Bank of America
4 of 5 stars
Ken Hoexter
Ken Hoexter
4 of 5 stars
Lower TargetBuy$146.00 ➝ $143.00+19.57%
8/31/2026Reiterated RatingHold
8/13/2026 UpgradeHold (C+) ➝ Buy (B-)
7/27/2026 Reiterated RatingHold
7/27/2026Boost TargetOutperform$195.00 ➝ $205.00+58.17%
7/27/2026Boost TargetOverweight$135.00 ➝ $145.00+11.94%
7/27/2026Boost TargetEqual Weight$109.00 ➝ $130.00+0.36%
7/15/2026 Initiated CoverageMarket Perform
7/8/2026 UpgradeHold
6/25/2026Set Target$124.00+6.94%
6/25/2026Boost TargetOutperformerC$182.00 ➝ C$185.00
6/25/2026 UpgradeIn-Line ➝ Outperform$124.00+6.94%
3/31/2026Boost TargetMarket Perform$113.88 ➝ $117.36+15.98%
2/2/2026 Reiterated RatingOutperform
2/2/2026 DowngradeStrong-Buy ➝ Hold
1/5/2026 UpgradeHold ➝ Buy
11/28/2025 UpgradeStrong Sell ➝ Hold
7/23/2025 Reiterated RatingOverweight ➝ Neutral
7/17/2025 UpgradeMarket Perform ➝ Outperform
4/14/2025Lower TargetBuy$125.00 ➝ $115.00+15.13%
4/9/2025Lower TargetBuy$120.00 ➝ $110.00+18.02%
2/3/2025DowngradeHold ➝ Sell
1/13/2025UpgradeHold ➝ Strong-Buy
10/23/2024UpgradeHold ➝ Strong-Buy
10/9/2024 Lower TargetSell$131.00 ➝ $124.00+9.16%

Analyst ratings data on MarketBeat is provided by Benzinga and other data providers. This page was last refreshed on Thursday at 03:16 PM ET.


Should I Buy Canadian National Railway Stock? CNI Pros and Cons Explained

These pros and cons were generated based on recent news and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate insights. They were last updated on Wednesday, October 7, 2026. Please send any questions or comments about these Canadian National Railway pros and cons to contact@marketbeat.com.

Canadian National Railway
Bull Case

green Wall Street bull icon

Here are some ways that investors could benefit from investing in Canadian National Railway:

  • Canadian National Railway recently set a new quarterly record for grain movement, transporting 7.94 million metric tonnes from Western Canada in the third quarter, which surpasses the previous record of 7.48 million metric tonnes set in 2020 and indicates strong demand for its logistics services.
  • The company reported second-quarter earnings of $1.50 per share, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.11, while revenue grew 11.3% year-over-year to $3.35 billion, demonstrating robust operational performance and profitability with a net margin of 26.92%.
  • Canadian National Railway offers a dividend yield of 2.18% with a payout ratio of 46.10%, providing a steady income stream for investors while maintaining a sustainable level of cash distribution relative to its earnings.
  • Analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $137.49, which suggests approximately 18.8% upside potential from the current stock price of $115.66, reflecting institutional confidence in the company's future growth.
  • The stock has demonstrated strong momentum by crossing above its 200-day moving average of $118.12 in early October, a technical indicator that often signals a shift toward a longer-term bullish trend for investors.

Canadian National Railway
Bear Case

red Wall Street bear icon

Investors should be bearish about investing in Canadian National Railway for these reasons:

  • Canadian National Railway is currently trading at $115.66, which is below its 50-day moving average of $123.67, suggesting that short-term momentum has weakened and the stock may be facing near-term downward pressure.
  • Several major financial institutions have recently lowered their price targets, including Citigroup cutting its target from $151.00 to $143.00 and Susquehanna reducing its target from $142.00 to $130.00, indicating a more cautious outlook on the stock's valuation.
  • The company's debt-to-equity ratio stands at 0.99, which is relatively high for a transportation firm, potentially limiting its financial flexibility to invest in new infrastructure or weather economic downturns without taking on additional leverage.
  • Short interest in the stock increased by 39.67% in the most recent reporting period to 6,732,279 shares, suggesting that a significant portion of the market is betting against the stock's price appreciation in the near term.
  • Canadian National Railway's current price-to-earnings ratio of 20.51 is higher than the broader market average, which may indicate that the stock is overvalued relative to its earnings growth, particularly if future revenue growth slows down.

CNI Forecast - Frequently Asked Questions

According to the research reports of 18 Wall Street equities research analysts, the average twelve-month stock price forecast for Canadian National Railway is $137.49, with a high forecast of $205.00 and a low forecast of $100.00.

18 Wall Street equities research analysts have issued "buy," "hold," and "sell" ratings for Canadian National Railway in the last twelve months. There are currently 9 hold ratings and 9 buy ratings for the stock. The consensus among Wall Street equities research analysts is that investors should "moderate buy" CNI shares.

According to analysts, Canadian National Railway's stock has a predicted upside of 17.43% based on their 12-month stock forecasts.

Over the previous 90 days, Canadian National Railway's stock had 2 upgrades by analysts.

Canadian National Railway has been rated by research analysts at Argus, Bank of America, Barclays, Benchmark, Citigroup, Citizens Jmp, Royal Bank Of Canada, Susquehanna, Weiss Ratings, and Wells Fargo & Company in the past 90 days.

Analysts like Canadian National Railway more than other "industrials" companies. The consensus rating for Canadian National Railway is Moderate Buy while the average consensus rating for "industrials" companies is Hold. Learn more on how CNI compares to other companies.


MarketBeat monitors more than a dozen sources for Canadian National Railway analyst ratings, with the most recent rating issued on 10/7/2026.
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