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Canadian National Railway (CNI) Stock Forecast & Price Target

Canadian National Railway logo
$120.56 -0.58 (-0.48%)
Closing price 03:59 PM Eastern
Extended Trading
$119.02 -1.54 (-1.28%)
As of 07:30 PM Eastern
Extended trading is trading that happens on electronic markets outside of regular trading hours. This is a fair market value extended hours 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

$138.21
14.65% Upside
According to the 18 analysts' twelve-month price targets for Canadian National Railway, the average price target is $138.21. 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 14.65% from the current price of $120.56.
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
9/29/25 to 9/29/26
1 Month Ago
8/30/25 to 8/30/26
3 Months Ago
7/1/25 to 7/1/26
1 Year Ago
9/29/24 to 9/29/25
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)
8 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$138.21$137.40$126.12$116.86
Forecasted Upside14.65% Upside9.14% Upside5.17% Upside24.39% 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.
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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
2.30
2.53
Consensus RatingModerate BuyHoldModerate Buy
Predicted Upside14.59% Upside107.31% Upside20.30% Upside
News Sentiment Rating
Positive News

See Recent CNI News
Positive News
Positive News
DateBrokerageAnalystActionRatingPrice TargetReport Date
Upside/Downside
Details
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%
8/31/2026
Argus logo
Argus
3 of 5 stars
Reiterated RatingHold
8/13/2026
Weiss Ratings logo
Weiss Ratings
3 of 5 stars
 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
7/14/2026Reiterated RatingPositive ➝ Neutral$138.00 ➝ $140.00+11.68%
7/9/2026Boost TargetBuy$124.00 ➝ $141.00+13.27%
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 Tuesday at 10:49 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 Tuesday, September 29, 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 is currently trading at $120.56, which is below the consensus price target of $137.396, suggesting potential upside for investors as analysts maintain a Moderate Buy rating.
  • The company recently reported strong third-quarter performance with revenue ton miles up 4.5% quarter to date, driven by a bumper Canadian grain crop that has continued into the third quarter, an unusual pattern that supports volume growth.
  • Productivity gains are significantly impacting the bottom line, with the Fast Track initiative delivering nearly CAD 100 million in savings during the first half, alongside a 13% increase in crew productivity and a 7% increase in locomotive utilization.
  • Canadian National Railway is expanding its reach into the Mexican market through a memorandum of understanding with Union Pacific, which allows the railroad to interchange traffic in Memphis and leverage a route that is approximately 400 miles shorter than its Canadian competitor's.
  • The company is on track to invest CAD 2.8 billion in capital expenditures, a level that is expected to remain in line with U.S. railroad peers for the next couple of years, supporting long-term capacity without excessive spending.

Canadian National Railway
Bear Case

red Wall Street bear icon

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

  • Rising diesel prices are negatively impacting the operating ratio, with an estimated 50-basis-point negative impact in the third quarter and a 150- to 200-basis-point negative impact in the fourth quarter if fuel prices remain at current levels.
  • The lumber market remains weak due to a 45% tariff and muted U.S. housing starts of about 1.3 million, which is dragging down performance in that specific freight category despite strength in other areas.
  • Regulatory requirements continue to limit the benefits from automated inspection systems, as manual certified car inspections are still required even when high-resolution camera portals could otherwise keep a 12,000-foot train moving more efficiently.
  • Short interest has increased in recent months, with shares shorted rising to 5,402,423 as of the September 15, 2026 record date, indicating that some investors are betting against the stock's performance.
  • The company's CEO, Jean-Jacques Ruest, has a relatively low approval rating of 0.46 out of 1.0, which may reflect concerns among stakeholders regarding leadership effectiveness or strategic direction.

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 $138.21, with a high forecast of $205.00 and a low forecast of $100.00.

18 Wall Street 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 analysts is that investors should "moderate buy" CNI shares.

According to analysts, Canadian National Railway's stock has a predicted upside of 14.65% based on their 12-month stock forecasts.

Over the previous 90 days, Canadian National Railway's stock had 3 upgrades and 1 downgrade 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, Stephens, 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 9/23/2026.
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