Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Rating Lowered to “Underweight” at Morgan Stanley

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $250.00 price target on the transportation company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would suggest a potential downside of 35.68% from the stock’s current price.

SAIA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wolfe Research reissued a “peer perform” rating on shares of Saia in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Stephens upgraded Saia from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $308.00 to $414.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Evercore downgraded Saia from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Saia from $343.00 to $371.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Saia from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $378.50.

Saia Stock Performance

Saia stock opened at $388.68 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.68. Saia has a 12 month low of $229.12 and a 12 month high of $507.39. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $351.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $315.33. The company has a market cap of $10.35 billion, a PE ratio of 40.83 and a beta of 2.09.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The transportation company reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by ($0.13). Saia had a return on equity of 9.86% and a net margin of 7.89%.The business had revenue of $789.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $773.82 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.84 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Saia will post 15.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Donna E. Epps bought 422 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $277.60 per share, with a total value of $117,147.20. Following the purchase, the director owned 1,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $514,115.20. This represents a 29.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Raymond R. Ramu sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was 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 directly owned 4,902 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,306,726.14. This represents a 16.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saia

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Viking Global Investors LP acquired a new position in shares of Saia during the 2nd quarter valued at $226,770,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Saia by 1,300.4% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 701,418 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $209,976,000 after buying an additional 651,332 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in Saia by 35.4% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,273,396 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $680,564,000 after acquiring an additional 594,674 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Saia in the fourth quarter worth about $130,411,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Saia by 141.3% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 557,129 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $166,782,000 after acquiring an additional 326,206 shares during the last quarter.

More Saia News

Here are the key news stories impacting Saia this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target to $400 and kept an Overweight rating, signaling buy-side support after management highlighted network scale opportunities. Barclays price target raise
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its target to $395 (Equal Weight), another vote of confidence that the network build—though heavy on capex—could pay off over time. Wells Fargo price target raise
• Positive Sentiment: Management reiterated a goal to improve the operating ratio by 100–200 basis points as network expansion drives scale — a concrete margin-improvement target that supports longer-term upside if execution holds. Operating ratio improvement target
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 revenue roughly matched/beat estimates (~$790M) and management pointed to continued ramp in new markets; top-line stability offsets some margin concerns but isn’t yet translating into profit recovery. Revenue and estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call and full transcripts are available for investors parsing management commentary on claims, capex and timing of margin improvement. Earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 EPS missed estimates ($1.77 vs. $1.90 consensus); full-year EPS and operating income declined materially year-over-year, reflecting profit pressure. Q4 results and EPS miss
• Negative Sentiment: Operating ratio worsened to 91.9% (Q4) and 89.1% (FY), driven by higher costs including ~$4.7M of elevated self-insurance from prior- year accidents — a near-term headwind to margins. Operating ratio and insurance impact
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley downgraded SAIA to Underweight with a $250 target (large implied downside), and some analysts/coverage note the stock’s high valuation vs. weakened profitability — elevating downside risk if volumes remain soft. Morgan Stanley downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst commentary (Seeking Alpha) flags that while network growth is impressive, margins are under pressure and valuation remains rich — a caution for value-focused investors. Seeking Alpha critique

About Saia

Saia, Inc is a publicly traded transportation company specializing in less-than-truckload (LTL) freight services across North America. Headquartered in Johns Creek, Georgia, the company focuses on the efficient movement of time-sensitive freight for a diverse customer base that spans retail, manufacturing, automotive, and healthcare industries. By leveraging a network of terminals and service centers, Saia provides tailored solutions designed to optimize supply chain performance.

The company’s core offerings include regional, interregional, and national LTL shipping, supported by volumetric LTL and port intermodal services.