Brokerages Set Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) PT at $134.37

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty-one ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $134.18.

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of Canadian National Railway in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $142.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Canadian National Railway from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Canadian National Railway from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd.

Canadian National Railway Stock Up 0.7 %

CNI stock opened at $119.41 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $75.77 billion, a PE ratio of 19.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $122.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $125.92. Canadian National Railway has a fifty-two week low of $103.96 and a fifty-two week high of $134.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.16 billion. Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 32.81% and a return on equity of 23.27%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Canadian National Railway will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Canadian National Railway Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a dividend of $0.625 per share. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.39%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Canadian National Railway by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,903 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $639,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC acquired a new position in Canadian National Railway during the third quarter valued at $324,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in Canadian National Railway by 53.2% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,879,091 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $311,892,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000,244 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its position in Canadian National Railway by 11.4% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 52,638 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $5,702,000 after acquiring an additional 5,381 shares during the period. Finally, Kampmann Melissa S. acquired a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,111,000. 80.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.