Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Invests $16.81 Million in Saia, Inc. $SAIA

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. invested approximately $16.81 million in Saia, Inc., acquiring 48,106 shares in the first quarter.
• Analysts have shown optimism for Saia, with a mix of ratings and target price increases, including a boost from Evercore ISI to $345.00, up from $297.00.
• Despite a quarter revenue decline of 0.7%, Saia reported an EPS of $2.67, surpassing the consensus estimate of $2.39.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 48,106 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $16,810,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned about 0.18% of Saia as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of SAIA. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Saia by 127.0% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 84 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Saia in the first quarter valued at about $43,000. Group One Trading LLC grew its holdings in Saia by 114.4% during the fourth quarter. Group One Trading LLC now owns 243 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 1,934 shares during the period. Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Saia in the 1st quarter valued at about $135,000. Finally, Fullcircle Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Saia in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $213,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SAIA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stephens upped their price objective on Saia from $274.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Saia from $251.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Zacks Research upgraded Saia from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. Benchmark lifted their price objective on Saia from $325.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus restated a "hold" rating and set a $306.00 price objective (up from $277.00) on shares of Saia in a report on Thursday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $347.16.

Saia Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SAIA traded up $0.57 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $306.81. 252,474 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 642,972. Saia, Inc. has a 1-year low of $229.12 and a 1-year high of $624.55. The company has a market capitalization of $8.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 14.29 and a beta of 2.00. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $300.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $307.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 1.49.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The transportation company reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.39 by $0.28. Saia had a return on equity of 12.42% and a net margin of 8.96%.The company had revenue of $817.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $826.59 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.83 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Saia, Inc. will post 15.46 EPS 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.