Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Sets New 1-Year Low After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR hit a new 52-week low during trading on Monday after Loop Capital downgraded the stock from a hold rating to a sell rating. The stock traded as low as $98.95 and last traded at $100.39, with a volume of 382203 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $104.51.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on CNI. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $131.00 to $124.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Canadian National Railway from $174.00 to $171.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $116.00 target price on shares of Canadian National Railway in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Securities raised shares of Canadian National Railway from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Canadian National Railway currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $124.19.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Canadian National Railway

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. XTX Topco Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 43.3% in the 3rd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 15,552 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,822,000 after buying an additional 4,698 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 29.6% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 92,300 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $10,820,000 after purchasing an additional 21,100 shares during the last quarter. Unigestion Holding SA grew its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 363.6% in the third quarter. Unigestion Holding SA now owns 153,880 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $18,012,000 after purchasing an additional 120,687 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 5.4% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 3,962,972 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $464,002,000 after buying an additional 202,303 shares during the period. Finally, Partners Group Holding AG raised its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 16.3% in the 3rd quarter. Partners Group Holding AG now owns 406,066 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $47,571,000 after purchasing an additional 56,849 shares in the last quarter. 80.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Canadian National Railway Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $103.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $110.45. The stock has a market cap of $64.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.91.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.39 by ($0.09). Canadian National Railway had a return on equity of 22.48% and a net margin of 26.09%. On average, analysts forecast that Canadian National Railway will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6159 per share. This is a boost from Canadian National Railway's previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. This represents a $2.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Canadian National Railway's payout ratio is presently 46.68%.

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.