Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.63

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, April 23rd, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a dividend of 0.625 per share by the transportation company on Friday, June 28th. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.04%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th.

Canadian National Railway has raised its dividend payment by an average of 10.3% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 1 consecutive years. Canadian National Railway has a dividend payout ratio of 37.8% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Canadian National Railway to earn $6.63 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.49 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 37.6%.

Canadian National Railway Stock Performance

Canadian National Railway stock opened at $122.80 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Canadian National Railway has a 1 year low of $103.96 and a 1 year high of $134.02. The company has a market cap of $78.43 billion, a PE ratio of 19.59, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.88. The company’s 50-day moving average is $129.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $122.20.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.02. Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 32.81% and a return on equity of 23.17%. The company had revenue of $3.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.25 billion. Equities analysts anticipate that Canadian National Railway will post 5.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Canadian National Railway in a research note on Wednesday. Susquehanna Bancshares upped their price target on Canadian National Railway from $115.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Canadian National Railway from $121.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Susquehanna upped their price target on Canadian National Railway from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Canadian National Railway from $121.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $147.86.

About Canadian National Railway

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.