Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,130,000 shares, a growth of 33.1% from the January 31st total of 1,600,000 shares. Approximately 0.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,340,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CNI has been the subject of several research reports. Evercore ISI upgraded Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Citigroup raised shares of Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $121.00 to $112.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Loop Capital cut shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.19.

Canadian National Railway Stock Down 0.7 %

Canadian National Railway stock traded down $0.69 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $97.56. 1,697,040 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,412,773. The company’s 50-day moving average is $102.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $108.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.66. Canadian National Railway has a 52-week low of $96.28 and a 52-week high of $134.02. The firm has a market cap of $61.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.05, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.91.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last announced its quarterly 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%. On average, analysts predict that Canadian National Railway will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.6159 per share. This represents a $2.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. This is a boost from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio is 47.66%.

Institutional Trading of Canadian National Railway

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 310.5% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,404 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $164,000 after buying an additional 1,062 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 128,771 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $15,086,000 after buying an additional 5,301 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 45.0% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 233,110 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $26,126,000 after buying an additional 72,320 shares in the last quarter. Northstar Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Northstar Asset Management Inc. now owns 96,462 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,301,000 after buying an additional 1,164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Radnor Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Canadian National Railway in the 3rd quarter worth $316,000. 80.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.