Railways Expand in U.S.

Article Excerpt

The shares of Canada’s two big railways, CN and CP, have moved down in the past six months due to concerns that the high Canadian dollar would hurt export volumes. However, both are taking advantage of the high dollar to expand their operations in the United States. While these acquisitions have run into opposition from environmental groups and others, they should eventually win regulatory approval. CANADIAN NATIONAL RAILWAY CO. $51 (Toronto symbol CNR; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 494.5 million; Market cap: $25.2 billion; SI Rating: Above average) has agreed to buy a major portion of a 319-km railway near Chicago for $300 million U.S. The company also plans to invest $100 million U.S. to expand capacity on the new line. To put these figures in context, CN earned $485 million (Canadian) or $0.96 a share in the third quarter of 2007. This lightly used line would let CN bypass heavy rail traffic in Chicago. However, the company’s…