CNI vs. ECHO: Canadian National Railway vs. EchoStar Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO) both fall under the Transportation industry group, but CNI is classified in Ground Transportation while ECHO is classified in Air Freight & Logistics.

Company profile comparison for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO)
Profile Item	CNI	ECHO
Name	Canadian National Railway Co.	EchoStar Corp. Class A Common Stock
Country/Region	Canada	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Transportation	Transportation
GICS Industry	Ground Transportation	Air Freight & Logistics
GICS Sub-Industry	Rail Transportation	Air Freight & Logistics
Market Capitalization	74.40 billion USD	27.53 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	Nasdaq
Listing Date	November 26, 1996	January 2, 2008
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CNI

ECHO

GSPC

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO)
Metric	CNI	ECHO
Total Return (1Y)	35.29%	36.02%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	6.80%	114.76%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	1.12%	29.96%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CNI

ECHO

GSPC

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO)
Metric	CNI	ECHO
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	22.27%	55.50%
Beta (5Y)	0.89	1.08
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-29.13%	-68.02%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.22M	3.68M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CNI and ECHO are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO)
Metric	CNI	ECHO
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.39	0.57
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	2.00	0.86

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both companies show strong equity returns, but EchoStar (ECHO) at 82.35% is the standout with ROE above its industry range; Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 22.45% also sits in the top quartile.

CNI

Transportation industry group

22.45%

Max: 45.08%
CNI: 22.45%
Q3: 22.02%
Median: 13.94%
Q1: 2.89%
Min: -10.45%

ECHO

Transportation industry group

82.35%

ECHO: 82.35%
Max: 45.08%
Q3: 22.02%
Median: 13.94%
Q1: 2.89%
Min: -10.45%

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their ROE against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

EchoStar (ECHO) at 81.29% keeps the most of each sales dollar — above its industry’s net margin range — and Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 26.42% also retains a top-quartile share.

CNI

Transportation industry group

26.42%

Max: 50.36%
CNI: 26.42%
Q3: 21.18%
Median: 5.58%
Q1: 1.55%
Min: -11.37%

ECHO

Transportation industry group

81.29%

ECHO: 81.29%
Max: 50.36%
Q3: 21.18%
Median: 5.58%
Q1: 1.55%
Min: -11.37%

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their net margin against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 41.52% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of EchoStar (ECHO) at 13.82%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

CNI

Transportation industry group

41.52%

Max: 59.18%
CNI: 41.52%
Q3: 29.30%
Median: 11.50%
Q1: 4.62%
Min: -8.91%

ECHO

Transportation industry group

13.82%

Max: 59.18%
Q3: 29.30%
ECHO: 13.82%
Median: 11.50%
Q1: 4.62%
Min: -8.91%

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their operating margin against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO)
Metric	CNI	ECHO
ROE (TTM)	22.45%	82.35%
ROA (TTM)	7.87%	2.09%
Net Margin (TTM)	26.42%	81.29%
Operating Margin (TTM)	41.52%	13.82%
Gross Margin (TTM)	55.44%	32.49%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 1.51% is around its peer norm for revenue growth, while EchoStar (ECHO) at -5.18% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker demand or pricing momentum.

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Canadian National Railway (CNI) reports EPS growth of 7.99%, ranked against its industry; EchoStar (ECHO) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO)
Metric	CNI	ECHO
Revenue Growth (YoY)	1.51%	-5.18%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	0.38%	-6.97%
EPS Growth (YoY)	7.99%	--
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	0.58%	--

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 0.82 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while EchoStar (ECHO) at 10.16 sits above its industry’s typical mid-range — comfortable liquidity, though possibly with more idle current assets relative to peers.

CNI

Transportation industry group

0.82

Max: 2.58
Q3: 1.62
Median: 1.16
CNI: 0.82
Q1: 0.78
Min: 0.22

ECHO

Transportation industry group

10.16

ECHO: 10.16
Max: 2.58
Q3: 1.62
Median: 1.16
Q1: 0.78
Min: 0.22

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their current ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 1.09 and EchoStar (ECHO) at 0.57 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

CNI

Transportation industry group

1.09

Max: 2.75
Q3: 1.37
CNI: 1.09
Median: 0.78
Q1: 0.35
Min: 0.00

ECHO

Transportation industry group

0.57

Max: 2.75
Q3: 1.37
Median: 0.78
ECHO: 0.57
Q1: 0.35
Min: 0.00

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO)
Metric	CNI	ECHO
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.82	10.16
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.09	0.57
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.46	-2.14

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

EchoStar (ECHO) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Canadian National Railway (CNI) reports a yield of 2.87%, ranking against industry peers normally.

CNI

Transportation industry group

2.87%

Max: 4.68%
CNI: 2.87%
Q3: 1.99%
Median: 0.74%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

ECHO

Transportation industry group

0.00%

Max: 4.68%
Q3: 1.99%
Median: 0.74%
ECHO: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

EchoStar (ECHO) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Canadian National Railway (CNI) reports a payout of 45.63%, ranking against industry peers normally.

CNI

Transportation industry group

45.63%

Max: 100.89%
CNI: 45.63%
Q3: 41.68%
Median: 20.43%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

ECHO

Transportation industry group

0.00%

Max: 100.89%
Q3: 41.68%
Median: 20.43%
ECHO: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO)
Metric	CNI	ECHO
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.87%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	45.63%	0.00%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

EchoStar (ECHO) at 3.43 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 21.61 is closer to its industry’s usual earnings multiple — a discount for ECHO, though growth and earnings durability still matter.

CNI

Transportation industry group

21.61

Max: 46.76
Q3: 30.87
CNI: 21.61
Median: 20.58
Q1: 10.44
Min: 0.00

ECHO

Transportation industry group

3.43

Max: 46.76
Q3: 30.87
Median: 20.58
Q1: 10.44
ECHO: 3.43
Min: 0.00

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 4.05 and EchoStar (ECHO) at 2.26 command a richer price per dollar of sales than most peers, sitting in the upper P/S ratio quartile of their industries.

CNI

Transportation industry group

4.05

Max: 4.35
CNI: 4.05
Q3: 2.07
Median: 0.93
Q1: 0.53
Min: 0.04

ECHO

Transportation industry group

2.26

Max: 4.35
ECHO: 2.26
Q3: 2.07
Median: 0.93
Q1: 0.53
Min: 0.04

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

EchoStar (ECHO) at 1.62 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 4.77 carries an above-peer premium to book — CNI is pricier on assets.

CNI

Transportation industry group

4.77

Max: 6.29
CNI: 4.77
Q3: 3.39
Median: 1.90
Q1: 1.03
Min: -2.07

ECHO

Transportation industry group

1.62

Max: 6.29
Q3: 3.39
Median: 1.90
ECHO: 1.62
Q1: 1.03
Min: -2.07

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. EchoStar (ECHO): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and EchoStar (ECHO)
Metric	CNI	ECHO
P/E Ratio (TTM)	21.61	3.43
P/S Ratio (TTM)	4.05	2.26
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	4.77	1.62
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.30%	-8.28%