Meridian Wealth Management LLC Decreases Position in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC decreased its stake in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) by 30.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,111 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 2,200 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Canadian National Railway were worth $519,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian National Railway in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway in the third quarter worth about $34,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 80.2% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Canadian National Railway by 48.2% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 332 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Susquehanna cut their price target on Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on 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. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Canadian National Railway from $125.00 to $123.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on Canadian National Railway from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.19.

Canadian National Railway Price Performance

Shares of CNI opened at $100.17 on Thursday. 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 company has a market cap of $62.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.56, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.91. Canadian National Railway has a 12 month low of $96.28 and a 12 month high of $134.02. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $102.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $108.77.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last released its quarterly earnings data 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, research analysts forecast that Canadian National Railway will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. This is a positive change from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.66%.

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.