Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nineteen ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $526.39.

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Saia from $456.00 to $478.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Saia from $530.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Saia from $565.00 to $484.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Saia in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Saia from $492.00 to $563.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th.

Saia Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SAIA opened at $349.29 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $9.30 billion, a PE ratio of 25.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.89. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $447.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $467.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.57. Saia has a fifty-two week low of $345.77 and a fifty-two week high of $624.55.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The transportation company reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $789.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $794.69 million. Saia had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 16.63%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.33 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Saia will post 15.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Saia

In other news, CAO Kelly W. Benton sold 460 shares of Saia stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $230,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,287 shares in the company, valued at $2,143,500. The trade was a 9.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Batteh sold 700 shares of Saia stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.09, for a total value of $350,063.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 3,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,663,299.34. This trade represents a 17.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,493 shares of company stock worth $4,646,181 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saia

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new position in Saia during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,408,000. Highview Capital Management LLC DE purchased a new position in Saia during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,324,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Saia during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,363,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Saia by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 226,137 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $103,057,000 after buying an additional 4,972 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Saia by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 6,804 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,101,000 after buying an additional 788 shares in the last quarter.

About Saia

Saia, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a transportation company in North America. The company provides less-than-truckload services for shipments between 100 and 10,000 pounds; and other value-added services, including non-asset truckload, expedited, and logistics services. It also offers other value-added services, including non-asset truckload, expedited, and logistics services.