Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Upgraded at Stifel Nicolaus

Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Monday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has $524.00 target price on the transportation company’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup reduced their target price on Saia from $561.00 to $544.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Saia from $456.00 to $478.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Saia from $600.00 to $565.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Saia from $566.00 to $558.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Saia from $525.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $535.12.

Saia Stock Down 1.5 %

SAIA opened at $404.34 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $473.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $467.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.93, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.79. Saia has a fifty-two week low of $358.90 and a fifty-two week high of $628.34. 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 (NASDAQ:SAIA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The transportation company reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $789.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $794.69 million. Saia had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 16.63%. Saia’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.33 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Saia will post 15.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Patrick D. Sugar sold 799 shares of Saia stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $493.74, for a total transaction of $394,498.26. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,260,482.46. The trade was a 8.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Kelly W. Benton sold 460 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $230,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,287 shares in the company, valued at $2,143,500. This represents a 9.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,493 shares of company stock valued at $4,646,181. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saia

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Saia in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Saia by 172.7% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 60 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of Saia in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Saia by 291.7% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 94 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Saia by 76.6% in the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 113 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during 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.