Canadian National Railway (CNI) Stock Forecast & Price Target

$96.71 -1.03 (-1.06%)

Closing price 03/21/2025 03:59 PM Eastern

Extended Trading

$97.32 +0.61 (+0.63%)

As of 03/21/2025 07:06 PM Eastern

Canadian National Railway - Analysts' Recommendations and Stock Price Forecast (2025)

MarketBeat calculates consensus analyst ratings for stocks using the most recent rating from each Wall Street analyst that has rated a stock within the last twelve months. Each analyst's rating is normalized to a standardized rating score of 1 (sell), 2 (hold), 3 (buy) or 4 (strong buy). Analyst consensus ratings scores are calculated using the mean average of the number of normalized sell, hold, buy and strong buy ratings from Wall Street analysts. Each stock's consensus analyst rating is derived from its calculated consensus ratings score (0 to .5 = Strong Sell, .5 to 1 = Sell, 1 to 1.5 = Reduce, 1.5 to 2.5 = Hold, 2.5 to 3.0 = Moderate Buy, 3.0 to 3.5 = Buy, >3.5 = Strong Buy). MarketBeat's consensus price targets are a mean average of the most recent available price targets set by each analyst that has set a price target for the stock in the last twelve months. MarketBeat's consensus ratings and consensus price targets may differ from those calculated by other firms due to differences in methodology and available data.

Consensus Rating

Moderate Buy

Based on 19 Analyst Ratings

Sell
2

Hold
6

Buy
11

Based on 19 Wall Street analysts who have issued ratings for Canadian National Railway in the last 12 months, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy." Out of the 19 analysts, 2 have given a sell rating, 6 have given a hold rating, 7 have given a buy rating, and 4 have given a strong buy rating for CNI.

Consensus Price Target

$124.19
28.42% Upside

According to the 19 analysts' twelve-month price targets for Canadian National Railway, the average price target is $124.19. The highest price target for CNI is $171.00, while the lowest price target for CNI is $112.00. The average price target represents a forecasted upside of 28.42% from the current price of $96.71.

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CNI Analyst Ratings Over Time

Type	Current Forecast 3/22/24 to 3/22/25	1 Month Ago 2/21/24 to 2/20/25	3 Months Ago 12/23/23 to 12/22/24	1 Year Ago 3/23/23 to 3/22/24
Strong Buy	4 Strong Buy rating(s)	4 Strong Buy rating(s)	3 Strong Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)
Buy	7 Buy rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)
Hold	6 Hold rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	11 Hold rating(s)	16 Hold rating(s)
Sell	2 Sell rating(s)	2 Sell rating(s)	1 Sell rating(s)	0 Sell rating(s)
Consensus Price Target	$124.19	$124.19	$125.86	$127.58
Forecasted Upside	28.42% Upside	19.63% Upside	24.40% Upside	-3.20% Downside
Consensus Rating	Moderate Buy	Moderate Buy	Hold	Hold

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CNI Analyst Recommendations By Month

The chart below shows how a company's ratings by analysts have changed over time. Each bar represents the previous year of ratings for that month. Within each bar, the sell ratings are shown in red, the hold ratings are shown in yellow, the buy ratings are shown in green, and the strong buy ratings are shown in dark green.

CNI Price Targets by Month

The chart below shows how a company's share price and consensus price target have changed over time. The dark blue line represents the company's actual price. The lighter blue line represents the stock's consensus price target. The even lighter blue range in the background of the two lines represents the low price target and the high price target for each stock.

Canadian National Railway Stock vs. The Competition

Type	Canadian National Railway	Transportation Companies	S&P 500
Consensus Rating Score	2.68	2.57	2.54
Consensus Rating	Moderate Buy	Moderate Buy	Moderate Buy
Predicted Upside	28.42% Upside	52.34% Upside	18.90% Upside
News Sentiment Rating	Positive News See Recent CNI News	Positive News	Positive News

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Recent Analyst Forecasts and Stock Ratings

Rating

Upside/Downside

Action

Time Frame

Start Date

End Date

Show

Export to Excel

Date	Brokerage	Analyst Name	Action	Rating	Price Target	Upside/Downside on Report Date
2/3/2025	Loop Capital 2 of 5 stars	Rick Paterson Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Downgrade	Hold ➝ Sell
1/31/2025	Royal Bank of Canada 4 of 5 stars	W. Spracklin Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Lower Target	Outperform ➝ Outperform	$174.00 ➝ $171.00	+60.65%
1/31/2025	Stifel Nicolaus 4 of 5 stars	Benjamin Nolan Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Boost Target	Buy ➝ Buy	$120.00 ➝ $125.00	+17.67%
1/17/2025	Barclays Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Brandon Oglenski Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Lower Target	Equal Weight ➝ Equal Weight	$121.00 ➝ $112.00	+9.26%
1/13/2025	TD Securities Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	C. Radbourne Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Upgrade	Hold ➝ Strong-Buy
1/13/2025	Wells Fargo & Company Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	C. Wetherbee Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Lower Target	Overweight ➝ Overweight	$125.00 ➝ $123.00	+23.67%
1/10/2025	Jefferies Financial Group Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Stephanie Moore Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Upgrade	Hold ➝ Buy	$120.00	+17.11%
1/8/2025	Bank of America Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Lower Target	Neutral ➝ Neutral	$119.00 ➝ $112.00	+8.59%
1/8/2025	Susquehanna Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Lower Target	Neutral ➝ Neutral	$125.00 ➝ $115.00	+11.75%
1/7/2025	JPMorgan Chase & Co. Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Upgrade	Neutral ➝ Overweight
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12/19/2024	Evercore ISI Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	J. Chappell Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Upgrade	Hold ➝ Strong-Buy
11/12/2024	Citigroup Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	A. Rosa Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Upgrade	Neutral ➝ Buy	$126.00 ➝ $130.00	+16.41%
10/24/2024	Benchmark Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Reiterated Rating	Hold
10/23/2024	Veritas Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	D. Fong Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Upgrade	Hold ➝ Strong-Buy
10/23/2024	Stephens Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	D. Imbro Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Reiterated Rating	Equal Weight ➝ Equal Weight	$116.00 ➝ $116.00	+1.98%
10/9/2024	The Goldman Sachs Group Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Lower Target	Sell ➝ Sell	$131.00 ➝ $124.00	+9.16%
10/9/2024	Sanford C. Bernstein Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	D. Vernon Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Lower Target	Market Perform ➝ Market Perform	$130.67 ➝ $126.29	+11.18%
7/10/2024	Scotiabank Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	K. Gupta Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Upgrade	Hold ➝ Strong-Buy
6/27/2024	National Bank Financial Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	C. Doerksen Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Upgrade	Sector Perform ➝ Outperform
1/10/2024	CIBC Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Downgrade	Sector Outperform ➝ Neutral
1/8/2024	Susquehanna Bancshares Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Boost Target	Neutral	$115.00 ➝ $143.00	+14.83%
11/27/2023	Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Downgrade	Buy ➝ Hold	$125.00 ➝ $121.00	+4.93%
9/14/2023	Raymond James Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Upgrade	Market Perform ➝ Outperform
8/1/2023	Argus Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Downgrade	Buy ➝ Hold
7/26/2023	Desjardins Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	B. Poirier Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating	Lower Target		C$184.00 ➝ C$181.00
7/26/2023	BMO Capital Markets Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Lower Target		C$177.00 ➝ C$175.00
5/4/2023	Morgan Stanley Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Upgrade	Equal Weight ➝ Overweight
4/25/2023	Credit Suisse Group Subscribe to MarketBeat All Access for the recommendation accuracy rating		Boost Target		$126.00 ➝ $133.00	+6.91%

Analyst ratings data on MarketBeat is provided by Benzinga and other data providers. This page was last refreshed on Saturday at 12:53 PM ET.

Should I Buy Canadian National Railway Stock? CNI Pros and Cons Explained

These pros and cons were generated based on recent news and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate insights. They were last updated on Tuesday, March 18, 2025. Please send any questions or comments about these Canadian National Railway pros and cons to contact@marketbeat.com.

Canadian National Railway
Bull Case

Here are some ways that investors could benefit from investing in Canadian National Railway:

Canadian National Railway recently reported a strong net margin of 26.09%, indicating efficient management and profitability, which can lead to higher returns for investors.
The company has a solid return on equity of 22.48%, showcasing its ability to generate profits from shareholders' equity, a positive sign for potential investors.
As of the latest trading session, the stock price is $96.76, which may present a buying opportunity for investors looking for value in the transportation sector.
Canadian National Railway has increased its quarterly dividend to $0.6159 per share, reflecting a commitment to returning value to shareholders and potentially attracting income-focused investors.
Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for the stock, with an average target price of $124.19, suggesting potential upside for investors considering entry points.

Canadian National Railway
Bear Case

Investors should be bearish about investing in Canadian National Railway for these reasons:

The company missed earnings expectations with an EPS of $1.30, falling short of the consensus estimate of $1.39, which may raise concerns about its short-term performance.
Canadian National Railway's current ratio is 0.66, indicating potential liquidity issues, as it may struggle to cover short-term liabilities with its current assets.
The stock has experienced a decline, trading down $1.44 recently, which could signal bearish sentiment among investors and market volatility.
With a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, the company is approaching a level where it may be seen as having a higher financial risk, which could deter risk-averse investors.
Recent analyst downgrades, including a reduction in price target by Wells Fargo from $125.00 to $123.00, may indicate a lack of confidence in the stock's near-term performance.

CNI Forecast - Frequently Asked Questions

: According to the research reports of 19 Wall Street equities research analysts, the average twelve-month stock price forecast for Canadian National Railway is $124.19, with a high forecast of $171.00 and a low forecast of $112.00.
: 19 Wall Street research analysts have issued "buy," "hold," and "sell" ratings for Canadian National Railway in the last year. There are currently 2 sell ratings, 6 hold ratings, 7 buy ratings and 4 strong buy ratings for the stock. The consensus among Wall Street research analysts is that investors should "moderate buy" CNI shares.
: According to analysts, Canadian National Railway's stock has a predicted upside of 28.42% based on their 12-month stock forecasts.
: Over the previous 90 days, Canadian National Railway's stock had 4 upgrades and 1 downgrade by analysts.
: Canadian National Railway has been rated by research analysts at Bank of America, Barclays, Jefferies Financial Group, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Loop Capital, Royal Bank of Canada, Stifel Nicolaus, Susquehanna, TD Securities, and Wells Fargo & Company in the past 90 days.
: Analysts like Canadian National Railway more than other "transportation" companies. The consensus rating score for Canadian National Railway is 2.68 while the average consensus rating score for "transportation" companies is 2.57. Learn more on how CNI compares to other companies.

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This page (NYSE:CNI) was last updated on 3/22/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff

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Canadian National Railway (CNI) Stock Forecast & Price Target