HTLF Bank Acquires New Holdings in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI)

HTLF Bank acquired a new stake in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,057 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CNI. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Canadian National Railway in the 4th quarter valued at about $727,713,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership acquired a new position in Canadian National Railway in the 3rd quarter valued at about $273,243,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Canadian National Railway by 25,348.8% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,650,355 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $194,698,000 after acquiring an additional 1,643,870 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD acquired a new position in Canadian National Railway in the 1st quarter valued at about $137,546,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Canadian National Railway by 166.7% in the 2nd quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,772,695 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $199,375,000 after acquiring an additional 1,108,104 shares in the last quarter. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Canadian National Railway Stock Performance

Shares of CNI opened at $127.65 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $129.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $81.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.88. Canadian National Railway has a 52-week low of $103.96 and a 52-week high of $134.02.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last announced its quarterly 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. The firm had revenue of $3.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.25 billion. Canadian National Railway had a return on equity of 23.56% and a net margin of 33.38%. Research analysts predict that Canadian National Railway will post 5.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.638 per share. This represents a $2.55 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. This is a boost from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio is 39.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on CNI shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on Canadian National Railway from $121.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Stephens lifted their target price on Canadian National Railway from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Bank of America raised Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $140.00 to $145.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Canadian National Railway in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, CIBC downgraded Canadian National Railway from a “sector outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $147.52.

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.