Canadian National Railway Co. on Tuesday reported a higher fourth-quarter profit and raised its dividend, bucking a weak trend among major North American railroads.

The Montreal-based railroad operator said it earned 941 million Canadian dollars ($669 million), or C$1.18 a share, up from C$844 million, or C$1.03, a year earlier. The latest results beat analyst expectations, which were for earnings of C$1.11 a share, according to Thomson Reuters.

Global economic uncertainty and slumping commodity prices have weighed on the results of North America's big railroads. Last week, Canadian Pacific Railway Co. and Union Pacific Corp. posted lower-than-expected quarterly results on weak volumes.

CN credited its "industry-leading" efficiency for its strong performance in a weak volume environment.

Its operating ratio—a measure of railway performance—improved to 57.2% from 60.7% a year earlier. The ratio indicates the percentage of operating revenue consumed by operating costs, so a decrease is an improvement.

CN said revenue fell 1% to C$3.17 billion. While revenue rose in sectors including automotive,​forest products and intermodal, it fell in metals and minerals, coal, and petroleum and chemicals. Carloadings overall declined 8%, but the railway said its operating costs fell 7%.

The company said it met its guidance for double-digit earnings-per-share growth in 2015, earning C$4.44 a share on an adjusted basis versus C$3.76​in 2014.

It said it expects to deliver mid-single digit earnings-per-share growth in 2016.

Additionally, the company raised its quarterly dividend by 20% to 37.5 Canadian cents a share.

Write to Carolyn King at carolyn.king@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 26, 2016 17:25 ET (22:25 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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