Canadian National railroad facing more investor pressure

A day after being spurned by Kansas City Southern, Canadian National railroad is facing additional pressure from a major investor who wants CN to abandon its effort to buy the U.S. railroad

OMAHA, Neb. -- A day after being spurned by Kansas City Southern, Canadian National railroad is facing additional pressure from a major investor who wants CN to abandon its effort to buy the U.S. railroad. The London-based investment firm TCI Fund — which owns about 5% of CN's stock and about 8% of rival Canadian Pacific's shares — said Monday that it is calling for a special CN shareholder meeting where it plans to nominate four new directors. TCI has said it thinks CN should overhaul its board, get a new CEO and refocus its efforts on improving its own operations. “History has shown that with the right leadership railroads can be improved quickly. TCI’s independent and highly skilled nominees, if elected, will help lead and guide the selection of a new CEO," said Chris Hohn, TCI founder and managing partner. TCI has said that a former CN executive who also served as Union Pacific’s head of operations for several years, Jim Vena, should be named CN’s next CEO.