CNI vs. XPO: Canadian National Railway vs. XPO Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

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

Company profile comparison for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and XPO (XPO)
Profile Item	CNI	XPO
Name	Canadian National Railway Co.	XPO, Inc.
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	20.62 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	November 26, 1996	October 7, 2003
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CNI

XPO

GSPC

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. XPO (XPO), 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 XPO (XPO). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and XPO (XPO). 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 XPO (XPO)
Metric	CNI	XPO
Total Return (1Y)	35.29%	32.98%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	6.80%	32.39%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	1.12%	32.42%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CNI

XPO

GSPC

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. XPO (XPO), 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 XPO (XPO). 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 XPO (XPO)
Metric	CNI	XPO
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	22.27%	41.59%
Beta (5Y)	0.89	1.88
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-29.13%	-46.99%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.22M	1.09M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CNI and XPO 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 XPO (XPO)
Metric	CNI	XPO
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.39	0.69
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	2.00	1.05

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 22.45% and XPO (XPO) at 26.54% sit in the top peer quartile for ROE, suggesting each generates more profit from shareholders’ equity than typical industry peers.

CNI

Transportation industry group

22.45%

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

XPO

Transportation industry group

26.54%

Max: 45.08%
XPO: 26.54%
Q3: 22.02%
Median: 13.94%
Q1: 2.89%
Min: -10.45%

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

Net Margin (TTM)

Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 26.42% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of XPO (XPO) at 5.69%, which keeps about the industry-typical 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%

XPO

Transportation industry group

5.69%

Max: 50.36%
Q3: 21.18%
XPO: 5.69%
Median: 5.58%
Q1: 1.55%
Min: -11.37%

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. XPO (XPO): 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 XPO (XPO) at 12.60%, 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%

XPO

Transportation industry group

12.60%

Max: 59.18%
Q3: 29.30%
XPO: 12.60%
Median: 11.50%
Q1: 4.62%
Min: -8.91%

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

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and XPO (XPO)
Metric	CNI	XPO
ROE (TTM)	22.45%	26.54%
ROA (TTM)	7.87%	7.12%
Net Margin (TTM)	26.42%	5.69%
Operating Margin (TTM)	41.52%	12.60%
Gross Margin (TTM)	55.44%	19.30%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 1.51% and XPO (XPO) at 1.05% 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. XPO (XPO): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 7.99% and XPO (XPO) at -18.27% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

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

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and XPO (XPO)
Metric	CNI	XPO
Revenue Growth (YoY)	1.51%	1.05%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	0.38%	1.86%
EPS Growth (YoY)	7.99%	-18.27%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	0.58%	-22.90%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 0.82 and XPO (XPO) at 0.99 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

XPO

Transportation industry group

0.99

Max: 2.58
Q3: 1.62
Median: 1.16
XPO: 0.99
Q1: 0.78
Min: 0.22

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

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 1.09 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while XPO (XPO) at 2.01 uses more debt funding than most peers.

CNI

Transportation industry group

1.09

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

XPO

Transportation industry group

2.01

Max: 2.75
XPO: 2.01
Q3: 1.37
Median: 0.78
Q1: 0.35
Min: 0.00

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. XPO (XPO): 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 XPO (XPO)
Metric	CNI	XPO
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.82	0.99
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.09	2.01
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.46	2.53

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

XPO (XPO) 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%

XPO

Transportation industry group

0.00%

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

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

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

XPO (XPO) 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%

XPO

Transportation industry group

0.00%

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

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

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and XPO (XPO)
Metric	CNI	XPO
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 XPO (XPO) at 41.64 sits in the richer quartile — XPO needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

CNI

Transportation industry group

21.61

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

XPO

Transportation industry group

41.64

Max: 46.76
XPO: 41.64
Q3: 30.87
Median: 20.58
Q1: 10.44
Min: 0.00

Canadian National Railway (CNI) vs. XPO (XPO): 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 XPO (XPO) at 2.33 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

XPO

Transportation industry group

2.33

Max: 4.35
XPO: 2.33
Q3: 2.07
Median: 0.93
Q1: 0.53
Min: 0.04

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

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both look rich against book: Canadian National Railway (CNI) at 4.77 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and XPO (XPO) at 10.45 prices even higher, above its industry range.

CNI

Transportation industry group

4.77

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

XPO

Transportation industry group

10.45

XPO: 10.45
Max: 6.29
Q3: 3.39
Median: 1.90
Q1: 1.03
Min: -2.07

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

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Canadian National Railway (CNI) and XPO (XPO)
Metric	CNI	XPO
P/E Ratio (TTM)	21.61	41.64
P/S Ratio (TTM)	4.05	2.33
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	4.77	10.45
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	3.30%	2.71%