Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Upgraded at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $120.00 target price on the transportation company’s stock.

CNI has been the subject of several other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Canadian National Railway in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Evercore ISI upgraded Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Canadian National Railway from $130.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Canadian National Railway has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.94.

Canadian National Railway Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE:CNI opened at $99.86 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market cap of $62.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.00, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.91. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $106.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $112.42. Canadian National Railway has a 12-month low of $98.96 and a 12-month high of $134.02.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The transportation company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 31.65% and a return on equity of 23.62%. Canadian National Railway’s revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.26 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Canadian National Railway will post 5.31 EPS for the current year.

Canadian National Railway Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a dividend of $0.6108 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.14%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Canadian National Railway

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 46.5% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 6,737,322 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $789,030,000 after buying an additional 2,137,948 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Canadian National Railway during the third quarter valued at approximately $159,907,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 4,614.6% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,336,027 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $157,896,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307,689 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 4.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,562,189 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,175,935,000 after purchasing an additional 790,420 shares during the period. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Canadian National Railway by 7.8% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 9,365,622 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,106,361,000 after acquiring an additional 674,536 shares during the last quarter. 80.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.