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

Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-four ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $330.25.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SAIA. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Saia from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saia in a report on Monday, December 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Saia from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 6th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Saia in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Saia from $328.00 to $319.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 31st.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Donna E. Epps bought 422 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $277.60 per share, with a total value of $117,147.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $514,115.20. The trade was a 29.51% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Raymond R. Ramu sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.57, for a total transaction of $266,570.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 4,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,306,726.14. This trade represents a 16.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saia

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in Saia by 177.5% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 111 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Saia during the third quarter valued at $30,000. AlphaQuest LLC acquired a new position in Saia during the second quarter valued at $41,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Saia by 69.0% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 142 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Saia by 52.9% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 208 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter.

Saia Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of SAIA stock opened at $345.05 on Friday. Saia has a 1 year low of $229.12 and a 1 year high of $545.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 1.68. The business’s fifty day moving average is $295.49 and its 200-day moving average is $293.01. The stock has a market cap of $9.19 billion, a PE ratio of 32.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.06 and a beta of 2.10.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The transportation company reported $2.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.28. Saia had a return on equity of 11.32% and a net margin of 8.77%.The business had revenue of $839.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $824.06 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Saia will post 15.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.