Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New Investment in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Free Report) TSE: CNR in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 276,052 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $28,022,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CNI. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. purchased a new stake in Canadian National Railway in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Canadian National Railway during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its position in Canadian National Railway by 80.2% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its stake in Canadian National Railway by 48.2% in the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 332 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.74% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Canadian National Railway from $120.00 to $110.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $123.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Canadian National Railway from $112.00 to $104.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Raymond James lowered Canadian National Railway from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Canadian National Railway from $174.00 to $171.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $120.36.

Canadian National Railway Price Performance

Shares of Canadian National Railway stock traded up $1.13 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $98.72. The stock had a trading volume of 262,365 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,279,849. The firm has a market cap of $62.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.93. Canadian National Railway has a 12 month low of $91.65 and a 12 month high of $130.63. The business's 50-day moving average is $98.81 and its 200 day moving average is $104.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI - Get Free Report) TSE: CNR last announced 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 return on equity of 22.48% and a net margin of 26.09%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Canadian National Railway will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $0.6159 per share. This is an increase from Canadian National Railway's previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. This represents a $2.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Canadian National Railway's payout ratio is currently 47.66%.

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.