Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Price Target Cut to $171.00 by Analysts at Royal Bank of Canada

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) had its price objective lowered by Royal Bank of Canada from $174.00 to $171.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $116.00 price target on shares of Canadian National Railway in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Securities raised shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Canadian National Railway from $121.00 to $112.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.19.

Canadian National Railway Stock Performance

CNI opened at $104.58 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.77 billion, a PE ratio of 16.76, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Canadian National Railway has a twelve month low of $98.96 and a twelve month high of $134.02. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $104.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $110.96.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by ($0.09). Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 31.65% and a return on equity of 23.62%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Canadian National Railway will post 5.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.6159 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. This is a boost from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. Canadian National Railway’s payout ratio is 38.30%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Canadian National Railway

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNI. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 2,137,948 shares in the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP purchased a new position in Canadian National Railway in the fourth quarter valued at $216,943,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Canadian National Railway during the 3rd quarter worth $159,907,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,562,189 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,175,935,000 after purchasing an additional 790,420 shares during the period. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank raised its position in Canadian National Railway by 64.5% in the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 1,492,218 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $174,813,000 after purchasing an additional 584,832 shares in the last quarter. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.