CN teams up with U.S. railways

Article Excerpt

CANADIAN NATIONAL RAILWAY CO. $156 is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol CNR; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 662.4 million; Market cap: $103.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 5.9; Dividend yield: 2.0%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; 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. CN has formed a new alliance with U.S.-based railways Union Pacific Railroad and GMXT to better handle intermodal containers that carry a variety of goods (food, automotive parts, home appliances, etc.) on trains, trucks and ships. Called Falcon Premium, this alliance will make it easier for customers to ship intermodal containers from Vancouver to Halifax, Chicago, and the northern part of Mexico City. This new alliance will help CN better compete with rival Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. (Toronto symbol CP) following its acquisition of U.S.-based railway Kansas City Southern. CN also expects its annual earnings per share will rise about 5% to $7.83 a share,…