The Successful Investor Hotline – Friday, April 27, 2012

Article Excerpt

CANADIAN NATIONAL RAILWAY CO., $84.39, Toronto symbol CNR, operates Canada’s largest freight-rail network. The company also serves 16 U.S. states. CN earned $775 million in the three months ended March 31, 2012. That’s up 16.0% from $668 million a year earlier. Earnings per share rose 20.7%, to $1.75 from $1.45, on fewer shares outstanding. If you exclude one-time items in both years, such as gains on the sale of rail lines in Southern Ontario, earnings per share rose 31.1%, to $1.18 from $0.90. On this basis, CN’s earnings beat the consensus estimate of $1.03 a share. Revenue rose 12.6% to $2.3 billion from $2.1 billion. Revenue from shipments of metals and minerals jumped 30.6%, followed by coal (up 18.4%), intermodal (containers that can be shipped by rail, ship or truck; up 17.3%), petroleum and chemicals (up 14.6%), automotive (up 13.0%) and forest products (up 9.7%). Grain and fertilizer revenue fell 2.2%. CN’s operating ratio improved to 66.2% from 69.0% a year earlier. (Operating ratio…