Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Shares of Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) gapped down prior to trading on Friday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $543.02, but opened at $452.09. Saia shares last traded at $447.94, with a volume of 596,634 shares changing hands.

The transportation company reported $3.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.43 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $754.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $772.36 million. Saia had a return on equity of 19.75% and a net margin of 12.31%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.85 earnings per share.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Benchmark boosted their price objective on shares of Saia from $575.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Saia from $475.00 to $618.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Wolfe Research cut shares of Saia from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Saia from $450.00 to $515.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of Saia from $500.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $500.84.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Richard D. Odell sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $536.75, for a total transaction of $5,367,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 5,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,214,595.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Richard D. Odell sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $536.75, for a total value of $5,367,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,989 shares in the company, valued at $3,214,595.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Frederick J. Holzgrefe III sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $533.46, for a total transaction of $4,000,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,248 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,600,738.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,699 shares of company stock valued at $14,966,813 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Saia during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC bought a new position in Saia during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Saia during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Saia during the first quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Saia during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000.

Saia Stock Down 21.0 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $11.40 billion, a PE ratio of 32.31, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.62. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $568.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $478.98.

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.