Pragma Gestao DE Patrimonio Ltd. Trims Stake in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI)

Pragma Gestao DE Patrimonio Ltd. cut its holdings in shares of Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) by 16.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 46,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 8,774 shares during the quarter. Canadian National Railway accounts for about 2.6% of Pragma Gestao DE Patrimonio Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Pragma Gestao DE Patrimonio Ltd.’s holdings in Canadian National Railway were worth $4,669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of CNI. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in Canadian National Railway by 46.5% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 6,737,322 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $789,030,000 after buying an additional 2,137,948 shares during the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway in the 4th quarter worth approximately $216,943,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Canadian National Railway during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $159,907,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Canadian National Railway by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,562,189 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,175,935,000 after purchasing an additional 790,420 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank raised its position in Canadian National Railway by 64.5% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 1,492,218 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $174,813,000 after purchasing an additional 584,832 shares during the period. 80.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Canadian National Railway Price Performance

CNI stock opened at $100.06 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $101.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $106.83. 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 stock has a market cap of $62.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.54, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.91. Canadian National Railway has a fifty-two week low of $93.64 and a fifty-two week high of $132.73.

Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) last issued 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.6159 per share. This is a positive change from Canadian National Railway’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. Canadian National Railway’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on CNI. Susquehanna dropped their price objective 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. TD Securities raised Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Loop Capital cut shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Canadian National Railway from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.19.

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.