Leaner railways set to compete

Article Excerpt

Canada’s two main railways face many unpredictable challenges, like bad weather and rising fuel costs. However, both have streamlined their operations. That helps them quickly respond to sudden setbacks. Both should continue to benefit as the improving economy pushes up freight volumes. We like both, but prefer CP for new buying. CANADIAN NATIONAL RAILWAY CO. $73 (Toronto symbol CNR; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 461.8 million; Market cap: $33.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 4.1; Dividend yield: 1.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.cn.ca) operates Canada’s largest freight-rail network, and serves 16 U.S. states. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is CN’s largest shareholder, with just over 10% of the shares. In the three months ended March 31, 2011, CN earned $668 million. That’s up 30.7% from $511 million a year earlier. The company spent $340 million on share buybacks in the latest quarter. Because of fewer shares outstanding, earnings per share rose 34.3%, to, $1.45 from $1.08. If you exclude one-time items…