Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Shares Down 7.5% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Shares fell 7.5% to about $408.30 on Monday with volume roughly 45% below average; the stock trades below analysts' average price target of $444.94 and carries an overall "Hold" consensus (10 Buy, 10 Hold, 1 Sell).
• Saia modestly beat Q1 expectations with EPS of $1.86 vs. $1.82 and revenue of $806.2M (up 2.4% year-over-year), and analysts project roughly 10.65 EPS for the full year.
• Insiders have been net sellers (15,533 shares sold in the last 90 days, including filings showing CFO and CAO reductions), while large institutions such as Viking, Invesco, AllianceBernstein and Norges Bank have built or increased sizable positions.

Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA - Get Free Report) traded down 7.5% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $408.87 and last traded at $408.30. 297,333 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 45% from the average session volume of 545,328 shares. The stock had previously closed at $441.26.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Saia in a report on Friday. Evercore set a $476.00 price objective on shares of Saia in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $441.00 price objective on shares of Saia in a report on Thursday. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Saia from $413.00 to $429.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Saia from $414.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $444.94.

Saia Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $382.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $346.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.52, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 2.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The transportation company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.04. Saia had a return on equity of 9.60% and a net margin of 7.84%.The firm had revenue of $806.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $789.08 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.86 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Saia, Inc. will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Batteh sold 916 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $389.03, for a total transaction of $356,351.48. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 4,444 shares in the company, valued at $1,728,849.32. This represents a 17.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Kelly W. Benton sold 800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $389.00, for a total value of $311,200.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 3,157 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,228,073. This represents a 20.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,533 shares of company stock valued at $6,015,055. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saia

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SAIA. Viking Global Investors LP bought a new stake in shares of Saia during the second quarter valued at about $226,770,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Saia by 1,300.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 701,418 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $209,976,000 after purchasing an additional 651,332 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in shares of Saia by 35.4% in the third 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 during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Saia in the fourth quarter worth approximately $130,411,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Saia by 141.3% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 557,129 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $166,782,000 after purchasing an additional 326,206 shares during the last quarter.

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.

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