Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – What’s Next?

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Friday . 3,296,575 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 140% from the previous session’s volume of 1,375,428 shares.The stock last traded at $100.64 and had previously closed at $101.94.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CNI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $123.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Securities upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Canadian National Railway currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.19.

Canadian National Railway Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $102.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $108.72. 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 company has a market cap of $63.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.66, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.91.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, analysts predict that Canadian National Railway will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.6159 dividend. This is a boost from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. This represents a $2.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.66%.

Institutional Trading of Canadian National Railway

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brucke Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Canadian National Railway during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $219,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. grew its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 233.3% during the 4th quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. now owns 25,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,537,000 after acquiring an additional 17,500 shares in the last quarter. Cypress Asset Management Inc. TX bought a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway in the 4th quarter worth about $875,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Canadian National Railway during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $102,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 370,310 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,590,000 after acquiring an additional 28,904 shares in the last quarter. 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.