Sterling Investment Management LLC Trims Position in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI)

Sterling Investment Management LLC lowered its position in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,899 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 287 shares during the quarter. Canadian National Railway makes up about 1.7% of Sterling Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Sterling Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Canadian National Railway were worth $2,167,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CNI. Ascent Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,014 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $474,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Pitcairn Co. lifted its stake in Canadian National Railway by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 2,979 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $354,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Mitchell Capital Management Co. grew its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. Mitchell Capital Management Co. now owns 9,756 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,151,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Spreng Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Canadian National Railway by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Spreng Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,833 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 28,401 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,067,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. 67.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Canadian National Railway Stock Performance

CNI traded down $1.81 on Tuesday, reaching $113.91. 159,656 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,120,117. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $115.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $116.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.82, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.91. Canadian National Railway has a fifty-two week low of $103.79 and a fifty-two week high of $129.89.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 25th. The transportation company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.06). Canadian National Railway had a return on equity of 24.62% and a net margin of 30.21%. The business had revenue of $3.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.13 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Canadian National Railway will post 5.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 8th will be issued a $0.5996 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 7th. This is an increase from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. Canadian National Railway’s payout ratio is presently 39.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on CNI. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from C$177.00 to C$175.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 26th. Stephens dropped their target price on Canadian National Railway from $124.00 to $122.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 26th. Barclays dropped their target price on Canadian National Railway from $122.00 to $119.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 26th. National Bank Financial dropped their target price on Canadian National Railway from C$173.00 to C$171.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 25th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $122.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Canadian National Railway currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $145.71.

About Canadian National Railway

Canadian National Railway Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in rail and related transportation business. The company offers rail services, which include equipment, custom brokage services, transloading and distribution, business development and real estate, and private car storage services; and intermodal services including temperature controlled cargo, port partnership, transloading and distribution, logistic parks, customs brokerage, trucking, and moving grains in containers.