Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Acquires 15,216 Shares of Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI)

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd lifted its position in shares of Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR by 46.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 48,144 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 15,216 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Canadian National Railway were worth $4,832,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 46.5% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 6,737,322 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $789,030,000 after purchasing an additional 2,137,948 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway during the fourth quarter valued at about $216,943,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway during the third quarter valued at about $159,907,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 4.4% during 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 acquiring an additional 790,420 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank grew its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 64.5% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 1,492,218 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $174,813,000 after acquiring an additional 584,832 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.74% of the company's stock.

Canadian National Railway Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:CNI traded up $2.25 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $103.96. 1,191,413 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,398,101. Canadian National Railway has a fifty-two week low of $98.69 and a fifty-two week high of $134.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $104.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $110.50. The firm has a market cap of $65.38 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.91.

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

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6159 per share. This is an increase from Canadian National Railway's previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. Canadian National Railway's payout ratio is presently 46.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on CNI. Citigroup raised shares of Canadian National Railway from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Canadian National Railway from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $120.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $174.00 to $171.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $130.67 to $126.29 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Two equities research 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 MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $124.19.

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.