Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) Sets New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR)’s share price reached a new 52-week low on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $96.27 and last traded at $96.36, with a volume of 76943 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $98.15.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Canadian National Railway from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Securities upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $126.00 to $130.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Two equities 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Canadian National Railway currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $124.19.

Canadian National Railway Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $60.02 billion, a PE ratio of 18.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $102.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.44.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last posted its earnings results 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Canadian National Railway will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.6159 dividend. This represents a $2.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.58%. This is an increase from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.85%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Canadian National Railway

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CNI. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. purchased a new position in Canadian National Railway during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Addison Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Canadian National Railway by 80.2% in the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in Canadian National Railway in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 80.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Canadian National Railway Company Profile

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.