Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Stock Price

Key Points

• Wells Fargo raised its price target on Saia from $395 to $445 while keeping an "equal weight" rating, a move that implies virtually no upside (about 0.03%) from the stock's current level.
• Analyst coverage is mixed—ten Buys, ten Holds and one Sell—with a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target of $427.83.
• Saia slightly beat Q1 estimates (EPS $1.86 vs. $1.82 and revenue $806.2M vs. $789.1M) but showed only 2.4% YoY revenue growth, and insiders have recently sold shares (15,533 shares worth ~$6.0M last quarter).

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $395.00 to $445.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the transportation company's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price would indicate a potential upside of 0.03% from the stock's current price.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $477.00 price objective on shares of Saia in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets set a $425.00 price target on Saia in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Evercore set a $435.00 price objective on Saia in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Saia from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 26th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Saia from $413.00 to $429.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $427.83.

Saia Price Performance

Shares of SAIA stock traded down $3.93 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $444.89. 91,624 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 544,133. Saia has a twelve month low of $244.94 and a twelve month high of $457.99. The firm has a market cap of $11.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 2.04. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $382.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $346.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.64.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The transportation company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $806.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $789.08 million. Saia had a return on equity of 9.86% and a net margin of 7.89%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.86 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Saia will post 10.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Saia news, VP Raymond R. Ramu sold 5,226 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $387.95, for a total value of $2,027,426.70. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 3,631 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,408,646.45. This trade represents a 59.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Batteh sold 916 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $389.03, for a total transaction of $356,351.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 4,444 shares in the company, valued at $1,728,849.32. The trade was a 17.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,533 shares of company stock valued at $6,015,055. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Saia

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake 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 in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 43,690 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 11,454 shares in the last quarter. Viking Global Investors LP grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 556,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 222,494 shares during the last quarter.

Key Headlines Impacting Saia

Here are the key news stories impacting Saia this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark (and coverage reports) raised Saia's price target to $500 and reiterated a Buy rating — this lift signals stronger analyst confidence and creates upside vs. prior targets. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat consensus: EPS of $1.86 vs. $1.82 expected and revenue $806.2M vs. $789.1M expected; revenue was up 2.4% year-over-year — the topline and slight EPS beat support near-term upside. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Management’s Q1 call highlighted record sales in parts of the network and hopes for a margin rebound, but the tone was cautious — indicates potential margin upside over time but no clear near-term acceleration. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: TD Cowen’s Jason Seidl lifted his price target to $445 but maintained a Hold — a mixed signal that raises targets while remaining cautious on near-term upside. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Underlying growth is modest and EPS was flat year-over-year, which keeps valuation scrutiny high given a premium P/E and multi-year margin assumptions embedded in higher price targets. Article Title

Saia Company Profile

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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