Short Interest in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Increases By 36.8%

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,120,000 shares, an increase of 36.8% from the August 15th total of 2,280,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,240,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.5 days. Approximately 0.5% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Canadian National Railway Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of CNI traded up $1.29 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $120.06. The stock had a trading volume of 288,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,086,318. The firm has a market cap of $75.93 billion, a PE ratio of 18.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.88. Canadian National Railway has a 1 year low of $103.96 and a 1 year high of $134.02. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $116.19 and its 200 day moving average is $122.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The transportation company reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $4.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. Canadian National Railway had a net margin of 32.00% and a return on equity of 23.58%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.31 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Canadian National Railway will post 5.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a $0.614 dividend. This represents a $2.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.07%.

Institutional Trading of Canadian National Railway

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CNI. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Canadian National Railway during the 4th quarter worth approximately $769,556,000. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 63.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,623,561 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $957,845,000 after purchasing an additional 2,951,506 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 92.4% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 4,505,860 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $593,911,000 after purchasing an additional 2,163,820 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 21,868,740 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,761,473,000 after purchasing an additional 1,907,938 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 4,614.6% during the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,336,027 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $157,896,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307,689 shares in the last quarter. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CNI shares. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $128.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $132.00 to $129.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Canadian National Railway from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $146.25 to $130.67 in a report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $137.35.

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.