Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nineteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and three have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $120.52.

A number of research firms recently commented on CNI. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $117.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $104.00 to $101.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. acquired a new stake in Canadian National Railway in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in Canadian National Railway in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Addison Advisors LLC grew its position in Canadian National Railway by 80.2% in the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Dagco Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway during the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 44.2% during the 1st quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 346 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.74% of the company’s stock.

Canadian National Railway Price Performance

NYSE CNI opened at $104.03 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.98. Canadian National Railway has a 1 year low of $91.65 and a 1 year high of $123.96. The business’s fifty day moving average is $102.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $101.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.62.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The transportation company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.38 billion. Canadian National Railway had a return on equity of 22.29% and a net margin of 26.19%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Canadian National Railway will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.8875 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 9th. This is an increase from Canadian National Railway’s previous dividend of $0.29. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.49%.

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.