CNI vs. UHAL: Canadian National Railway vs. U-Haul Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Canadian National Railway (CNI) and U-Haul (UHAL) 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 U-Haul (UHAL) both belong to the Ground Transportation industry, though CNI is classified under Rail Transportation while UHAL falls under Cargo Ground Transportation.

Company profile comparison for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and U-Haul (UHAL)
Profile Item	CNI	UHAL
Name	Canadian National Railway Co.	U-Haul Holding Company
Country/Region	Canada	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Transportation	Transportation
GICS Industry	Ground Transportation	Ground Transportation
GICS Sub-Industry	Rail Transportation	Cargo Ground Transportation
Market Capitalization	74.40 billion USD	11.01 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	November 26, 1996	November 4, 1994
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CNI

UHAL

GSPC

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL), 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 U-Haul (UHAL). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and U-Haul (UHAL). 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 U-Haul (UHAL)
Metric	CNI	UHAL
Total Return (1Y)	35.29%	7.10%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	6.80%	2.77%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	1.12%	-5.22%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CNI

UHAL

GSPC

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL), 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 U-Haul (UHAL). 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 U-Haul (UHAL)
Metric	CNI	UHAL
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	22.27%	34.63%
Beta (5Y)	0.89	1.06
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-29.13%	-46.19%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.22M	147.08K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CNI and UHAL 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 U-Haul (UHAL)
Metric	CNI	UHAL
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.39	0.08
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	2.00	0.12

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 22.45% sits in the top ROE quartile, while U-Haul (UHAL) at 1.23% is in the bottom quartile, showing a clear gap in returns on equity.

CNI

Transportation industry group

22.45%

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

UHAL

Transportation industry group

1.23%

Max: 45.08%
Q3: 22.02%
Median: 13.94%
Q1: 2.89%
UHAL: 1.23%
Min: -10.45%

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their ROE against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 26.42% keeps a top-quartile share of each sales dollar as profit, while U-Haul (UHAL) at 1.54% keeps a bottom-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%

UHAL

Transportation industry group

1.54%

Max: 50.36%
Q3: 21.18%
Median: 5.58%
Q1: 1.55%
UHAL: 1.54%
Min: -11.37%

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): 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 U-Haul (UHAL) at 14.92%, 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%

UHAL

Transportation industry group

14.92%

Max: 59.18%
Q3: 29.30%
UHAL: 14.92%
Median: 11.50%
Q1: 4.62%
Min: -8.91%

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their operating margin against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and U-Haul (UHAL)
Metric	CNI	UHAL
ROE (TTM)	22.45%	1.23%
ROA (TTM)	7.87%	1.39%
Net Margin (TTM)	26.42%	1.54%
Operating Margin (TTM)	41.52%	14.92%
Gross Margin (TTM)	55.44%	28.43%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 1.51% and U-Haul (UHAL) at 3.59% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 7.99% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while U-Haul (UHAL) at -85.80% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker earnings momentum.

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and U-Haul (UHAL)
Metric	CNI	UHAL
Revenue Growth (YoY)	1.51%	3.59%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	0.38%	0.97%
EPS Growth (YoY)	7.99%	-85.80%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	0.58%	-64.88%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 0.82 and U-Haul (UHAL) at 1.02 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity 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

UHAL

Transportation industry group

1.02

Max: 2.58
Q3: 1.62
Median: 1.16
UHAL: 1.02
Q1: 0.78
Min: 0.22

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their current ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 1.09 and U-Haul (UHAL) at 1.07 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

UHAL

Transportation industry group

1.07

Max: 2.75
Q3: 1.37
UHAL: 1.07
Median: 0.78
Q1: 0.35
Min: 0.00

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): 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 U-Haul (UHAL)
Metric	CNI	UHAL
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.82	1.02
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.09	1.07
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.46	9.16

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

U-Haul (UHAL) 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%

UHAL

Transportation industry group

0.00%

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

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

U-Haul (UHAL) 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%

UHAL

Transportation industry group

0.00%

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

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and U-Haul (UHAL)
Metric	CNI	UHAL
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.87%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	45.63%	0.00%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 21.61 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while U-Haul (UHAL) at 183.03 sits above its peer range — an unusually expensive price for UHAL’s trailing earnings.

CNI

Transportation industry group

21.61

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

UHAL

Transportation industry group

183.03

UHAL: 183.03
Max: 46.76
Q3: 30.87
Median: 20.58
Q1: 10.44
Min: 0.00

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

U-Haul (UHAL) at 1.79 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 4.05 sits in the pricier quartile — CNI costs more per dollar of sales.

CNI

Transportation industry group

4.05

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

UHAL

Transportation industry group

1.79

Max: 4.35
Q3: 2.07
UHAL: 1.79
Median: 0.93
Q1: 0.53
Min: 0.04

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

U-Haul (UHAL) at 1.40 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

UHAL

Transportation industry group

1.40

Max: 6.29
Q3: 3.39
Median: 1.90
UHAL: 1.40
Q1: 1.03
Min: -2.07

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. U-Haul (UHAL): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and U-Haul (UHAL)
Metric	CNI	UHAL
P/E Ratio (TTM)	21.61	183.03
P/S Ratio (TTM)	4.05	1.79
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	4.77	1.40
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.30%	-13.85%