Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Canadian National Railway Call Options (NYSE:CNI)

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 4,896 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 768% compared to the average daily volume of 564 call options.

Canadian National Railway Stock Down 0.6 %

CNI stock traded down $0.58 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $94.17. The company had a trading volume of 772,885 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,445,691. The company has a market capitalization of $59.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.40, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.93. Canadian National Railway has a 52 week low of $92.58 and a 52 week high of $132.27. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $100.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The transportation company reported $1.30 earnings per share 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, equities analysts predict that Canadian National Railway will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian National Railway Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.6159 dividend. This represents a $2.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.62%. This is a boost from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on CNI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Canadian National Railway from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Canadian National Railway from $119.00 to $112.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Securities raised shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Canadian National Railway from $112.00 to $104.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.36.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Canadian National Railway

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new stake in Canadian National Railway in the third quarter valued at approximately $478,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 24,986 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,927,000 after acquiring an additional 720 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway by 123.7% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 172,172 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $20,170,000 after acquiring an additional 95,200 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in Canadian National Railway in the 3rd quarter valued at $823,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in Canadian National Railway during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,017,000. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.