Susquehanna Has Lowered Expectations for Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Stock Price

Key Points

• Susquehanna lowered Saia’s price target from $412 to $360 while maintaining a “neutral” rating, implying roughly 4.5% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: 14 analysts rate Saia a Buy, six a Hold and one a Sell, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and average target of $442.58.
• Saia reported quarterly EPS of $3.51, exceeding the $3.38 estimate, while revenue rose 17.1% year over year to $956.49 million. Institutional investors, including BlackRock, have also increased or initiated positions in the company.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA - Get Free Report) had its price target decreased by stock analysts at Susquehanna from $412.00 to $360.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the transportation company's stock. Susquehanna's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 4.54% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on SAIA. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $476.00 target price on shares of Saia in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Saia in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $439.00 target price for the company. Evercore upgraded Saia from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Saia from $520.00 to $490.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Saia from $527.00 to $504.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 31st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Saia currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $442.58.

Saia Stock Up 3.2%

NASDAQ:SAIA opened at $344.38 on Friday. Saia has a twelve month low of $249.32 and a twelve month high of $494.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 2.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $356.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $399.18.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The transportation company reported $3.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.38 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $956.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $956.20 million. Saia had a return on equity of 10.21% and a net margin of 8.19%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.67 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Saia will post 11.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saia

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SAIA. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Saia during the 4th quarter valued at about $130,411,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in Saia during the second quarter worth about $140,979,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Saia in the second quarter valued at approximately $109,089,000. Capital Research Global Investors bought a new position in Saia in the 4th quarter valued at $57,479,000. Finally, BlackRock Inc. grew its position in Saia by 6.6% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,545,731 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,072,160,000 after buying an additional 156,628 shares during the period.

Saia Company Profile

Saia, Inc is a transportation and logistics company headquartered in Johns Creek, Georgia. Its primary business is less-than-truckload (LTL) freight transportation, serving shippers whose shipments do not require a full truck. Through its Saia LTL Freight subsidiary, the company provides regional and interregional freight services, including standard, expedited and time-definite delivery options.

Saia also provides third-party logistics services through Saia Logistics Services. These offerings can include the coordination of truckload, LTL, intermodal and other transportation solutions, allowing customers to manage a broader range of shipping needs through one provider.

The company traces its history to 1924, when it began operations in Louisiana.

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