5 Stocks Activist Investors are Buying

3. Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42

Headquartered in Montreal, Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI) is a rail and transportation company that transports petroleum, chemicals, grain, fertilizers, coal, metals, minerals, and automotive products for enterprise and industrial customers in Canada and the United States. 

Publishing its Q4 results on January 25, Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI) posted earnings per share of $1.35, beating estimates by $0.15. The Q4 revenue came in at $2.97 billion, outperforming estimates by $78.36 million. 

TCI Fund Management, a British activist fund managed by billionaire Chris Hohn, owns the largest stake in Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI) as of Q3 2021, with 36.6 million shares worth $4.2 billion. TCI Fund Management pushed for board changes at Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI), and on January 25, the company reported that a new chief executive officer will be appointed, albeit it will not be the candidate that the activist investor put forward. Two new independent directors will also be hired on the board. TCI Fund Management emphasized on refreshing the board, adding experienced industry veterans and external directors to improve performance and governance at Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI). 

Deutsche Bank analyst Amit Mehrotra on January 27 raised the price target on Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI) to $142 from $137 and kept a Buy rating on the shares following the “very strong” Q4 results.

According to Insider Monkey’s Q3 database, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust held a prominent stake in Canadian National Railway Company (NYSE:CNI), worth $1.5 billion. Overall, 43 hedge funds were bullish on the stock in Q3 2021, with stakes totaling $7.3 billion.