JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Stock

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase raised its price target on Saia from $402 to $465 and maintained an "overweight" rating, implying roughly a 4.3% upside from the current price.
• Saia slightly beat Q1 estimates with EPS of $1.86 (vs. $1.82) and revenue of $806.2M, and management highlighted record sales and hopes for a margin rebound.
• Analyst views are mixed: the consensus is a "Hold" with an average price target of $433.39, while individual targets range from about $425 to $500 and ratings are split between buys and holds.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $402.00 to $465.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the transportation company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target would indicate a potential upside of 4.30% from the stock's current price.

SAIA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. BMO Capital Markets set a $425.00 price target on shares of Saia in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Saia in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Saia from $395.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Saia from $431.00 to $442.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Benchmark increased their target price on shares of Saia from $425.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Saia has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $433.39.

Saia Price Performance

Saia stock traded down $2.98 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $445.84. 150,188 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 544,924. The company has a market cap of $11.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.86, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 2.04. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $382.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $346.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Saia has a 12-month low of $244.94 and a 12-month high of $457.99.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The transportation company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $806.23 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $789.08 million. Saia had a net margin of 7.89% and a return on equity of 9.86%. Saia's revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.86 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Saia will post 10.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Saia

In other news, CEO Frederick J. Holzgrefe III sold 4,775 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $388.80, for a total value of $1,856,520.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 22,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,842,478.40. This trade represents a 17.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Batteh sold 1,110 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $375.71, for a total transaction of $417,038.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 5,360 shares in the company, valued at $2,013,805.60. This represents a 17.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 15,533 shares of company stock worth $6,015,055 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Saia

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SAIA. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Saia by 35.4% in the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,273,396 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $680,564,000 after purchasing an additional 594,674 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Saia by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,798,841 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $587,358,000 after purchasing an additional 43,690 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Saia by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,419,062 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $424,794,000 after purchasing an additional 11,454 shares in the last quarter. Viking Global Investors LP boosted its stake in Saia by 67.2% in the 3rd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 1,383,888 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $414,281,000 after purchasing an additional 556,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Saia by 31.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 923,912 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $301,676,000 after purchasing an additional 222,494 shares in the last quarter.

Key Stories Impacting Saia

Here are the key news stories impacting Saia this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark raised its price target to $500 and reiterated a Buy rating, signaling roughly double-digit upside from current levels and suggesting stronger conviction on Saia's growth/pricing outlook. Benchmark raise
• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results: Saia reported $1.86 EPS (beat by ~$0.04) and $806.2M revenue (beat estimates), with revenue up 2.4% YoY — a modest beat that supports current earnings stability. Q1 release
• Positive Sentiment: Earnings call takeaway: management highlighted record sales and hopes for margin rebound, indicating improving pricing power and volume trends that could support multi‑year margin upside. Earnings call summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings transcript and analyst note coverage are out for deeper read — useful for gauging guidance/ask-and-answer detail but contain no new headline surprises. Earnings transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary shows mixed stances: TD Cowen maintained a Hold while lifting its PT (neutral tone); broader analyst writeups (Zacks, MarketBeat) note modest beats and key metrics — supportive but not transformative. Zacks coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target to $445 but kept an Equal Weight rating; the PT sits essentially in line with the stock, implying limited near-term upside and contributing to selling pressure. Wells Fargo note

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.