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Canadian National Railway (CNI) Stock Forecast & Price Target

Canadian National Railway logo
$122.79 -0.58 (-0.47%)
Closing price 03:59 PM Eastern
Extended Trading
$125.22 +2.42 (+1.97%)
As of 05:24 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

$137.40
11.89% Upside
According to the 18 analysts' twelve-month price targets for Canadian National Railway, the average price target is $137.40. 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 11.89% from the current price of $122.79.
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
9/8/25 to 9/8/26
1 Month Ago
8/9/25 to 8/9/26
3 Months Ago
6/10/25 to 6/10/26
1 Year Ago
9/8/24 to 9/8/25
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)
8 Buy rating(s)
9 Buy rating(s)
7 Buy rating(s)
Hold
9 Hold rating(s)
9 Hold rating(s)
10 Hold rating(s)
9 Hold rating(s)
Sell
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Sell rating(s)
0 Sell rating(s)
2 Sell rating(s)
Consensus Price Target$137.40$137.40$122.04$118.36
Forecasted Upside11.89% Upside8.54% Upside2.29% Upside23.95% Upside
Consensus RatingModerate BuyHoldHoldHold

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 Upside11.68% Upside92.80% Upside14.82% Upside
News Sentiment Rating
Positive News

See Recent CNI News
Positive News
Positive News
DateBrokerageAnalystActionRatingPrice TargetReport Date
Upside/Downside
Details
8/31/2026
Argus logo
Argus
3 of 5 stars
Reiterated RatingHold
8/13/2026
Weiss Ratings logo
Weiss Ratings
5 of 5 stars
 UpgradeHold (C+)Buy (B-)
7/27/2026
Benchmark Co. logo
Benchmark
4 of 5 stars
 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 RatingPositiveNeutral$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-LineOutperform$124.00+6.94%
6/23/2026Boost TargetBuy$132.00 ➝ $134.00+16.16%
3/31/2026Boost TargetMarket Perform$113.88 ➝ $117.36+15.98%
2/2/2026 Reiterated RatingOutperform
2/2/2026 DowngradeStrong-BuyHold
1/5/2026 UpgradeHoldBuy
11/28/2025 UpgradeStrong SellHold
7/23/2025 Reiterated RatingOverweightNeutral
7/17/2025 UpgradeMarket PerformOutperform
4/14/2025Lower TargetBuy$125.00 ➝ $115.00+15.13%
4/9/2025Lower TargetBuy$120.00 ➝ $110.00+18.02%
2/3/2025DowngradeHoldSell
1/13/2025UpgradeHoldStrong-Buy
10/23/2024UpgradeHoldStrong-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 05:37 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 Monday, September 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 monthly record for grain movement in August 2026, moving 2.50 million metric tonnes of grain from Western Canada, which surpasses the previous record of 2.34 million metric tonnes set in August 2020 and signals strong network efficiency and added capacity supporting a robust start to the 2026-2027 crop year.
  • The company demonstrated strong financial performance in its most recent earnings report on July 24, 2026, where it beat consensus estimates with an actual EPS of $1.50 compared to the expected $1.39, while also reporting actual revenue of $3,346.11 million against a consensus of $3,260.57 million, reflecting an 11.3% year-over-year revenue growth.
  • Analyst sentiment has improved significantly, with the consensus rating shifting to a Moderate Buy as of August 21, 2026, accompanied by a consensus price target of $137.396, which suggests potential upside from the current stock price of $123.42.
  • Canadian National Railway offers a defensive investment profile with a dividend yield of 2.17% and a beta of 0.94, indicating lower volatility relative to the broader market, which is attractive for investors seeking stability and income in a potentially weaker dollar environment.
  • The stock has shown strong momentum, trading near its 52-week high of $131.55 and recently hitting a 52-week high of $129.54 on July 20, 2026, indicating sustained investor interest and positive price action over the past year.

Canadian National Railway
Bear Case

red Wall Street bear icon

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

  • Short interest in Canadian National Railway has increased significantly, with shares shorted rising to 4,820,073 as of August 14, 2026, representing a 3.61% month-to-month increase and a short percentage of float of 0.82%, which may indicate bearish sentiment among some market participants.
  • The company's earnings per share have declined year-over-year, with the most recent EPS of $1.50 in July 2026 down from $1.87 in the same period last year, suggesting potential pressure on profitability despite revenue growth.
  • Some institutional investors have reduced their positions in Canadian National Railway, such as Mufg Securities Canada LTD. trimming its stake by 5.5% and QV Investors Inc. lowering its position by 4.0% during the second quarter, which could reflect a lack of confidence in the stock's near-term outlook.
  • The current stock price of $123.42 is below the 52-week high of $131.55, indicating that the stock has not yet reached its peak valuation and may face resistance at higher price levels.
  • Canadian National Railway operates in a capital-intensive industry with significant exposure to commodity cycles, such as grain and coal, which can lead to volatility in revenue and earnings depending on global demand and supply conditions.

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 $137.40, 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 year. 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 11.89% based on their 12-month stock forecasts.

Over the previous 90 days, Canadian National Railway's stock had 5 upgrades and 1 downgrade by analysts.

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 8/31/2026.
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