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What's in Store for Canadian National (CNI) in Q3 Earnings?

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Canadian National Railway Company (CNI - Free Report) is scheduled to report third-quarter 2023 results on Oct 24, after market close.

CNI has outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in two of the preceding four quarters (missed twice), the average beat being 2.5%.

Let’s see how things have shaped up for Canadian National this earnings season.

Q3 Expectations

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Canadian National’s third-quarter 2023 revenues is pegged at $3.05 billion, indicating 11.8% year-over-year fall. The top line is likely to have been hurt by lower segmental volumes. Per our estimate, Intermodal and Forest Product revenues are expected to have fallen 25.7% and 2.8% year-over-year, respectively.

On the flip side, rising fuel prices, supply-chain woes and network fluidity challenges have been bothering CNI’s bottom line. Notably, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings has been revised downward by 13.5% in the past 90 days.

 

Mounting operating expenses might have also hurt bottom-line results. We estimate adjusted operating expenses to gain 2.4% year over year during the third quarter.

What Our Model Says

Our proven model does not predict an earnings beat for Canadian National this time around. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat, which is not the case here. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they're reported with our  Earnings ESP Filter.

Canadian National has an Earnings ESP of -2.26% and a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

Q2 Highlights

Canadian National reported disappointing second-quarter 2023 results, wherein both earnings and revenues lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.31 (C$1.76) missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.37 and declined year over year. Quarterly revenues of $3,020.5 million (C$4,057 million) missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3,129.4 million and decreased year over year.

Stocks to Consider

Here are a few stocks from the broader Zacks Transportation sector that investors may consider, as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to beat on their third-quarter 2023 earnings.

Old Dominion Freight Line (ODFL - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +0.40% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

ODFL is scheduled to report third-quarter 2023 earnings on Oct 25. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings has been revised 2.91% upward over the last 60 days. ODFL has an impressive earnings surprise history, having surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the preceding four quarters (missing the mark on the other occasion), the average beat being 3.86%.

Kirby Corporation (KEX - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +6.52% and a Zacks Rank #2. KEX is slated to report third-quarter 2023 earnings on Oct 26.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter 2023 earnings has remained flat over the last seven days. KEX has a stellar earnings surprise history, having outshined the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the preceding four quarters by an average of 8.03%.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.
 


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