CN rebounds from failed takeover deal

Article Excerpt

In 2022, CN failed in its attempt to acquire U.S. railway Kansas City Southern; KCS later merged with rival Canadian Pacific. However, CN used the termination fee it received from KCS to increase its dividend and buy back shares. The company’s strong focus on efficiency will also push its earnings higher. CANADIAN NATIONAL RAILWAY CO. $153 is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol CNR; Conservative-Growth Payer Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 662.4 million; Market cap: $101.3 billion; Dividend yield: 2.1%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Highest; www.cn.ca) operates Canada’s largest railway. Its 29,900-kilometre network stretches across the country, and passes through the U.S. Midwest to the Gulf of Mexico. With the March 2023 payment, CN raised your quarterly dividend by 7.8%, to $0.79 a share from $0.7325. The new annual rate of $3.16 yields 2.1%. The company has now increased that rate each of the past 27 years. CN’s wide geographic reach reduces its reliance on any one region; that lowers risk for investors. In 2022, 18%…