Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Shares Up 4.1% After Insider Buying Activity

Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) shares traded up 4.1% during trading on Monday after an insider bought additional shares in the company. The company traded as high as $288.66 and last traded at $292.9910. 13,622 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 98% from the average session volume of 607,129 shares. The stock had previously closed at $281.56.

Specifically, Director Donna E. Epps acquired 422 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $277.60 per share, for a total transaction of $117,147.20. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,852 shares in the company, valued at $514,115.20. This represents a 29.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on SAIA shares. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Saia from $328.00 to $319.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on Saia from $360.00 to $355.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Saia from $360.00 to $346.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Rothschild & Co Redburn started coverage on shares of Saia in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $262.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Rothschild Redb upgraded shares of Saia to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $330.10.

Saia Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $289.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $289.55. The stock has a market cap of $8.60 billion, a PE ratio of 30.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.38 and a beta of 2.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 1.68.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The transportation company reported $2.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $839.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $824.06 million. Saia had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 11.32%. The company’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.46 EPS. Analysts expect that Saia, Inc. will post 15.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saia

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SAIA. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Saia by 177.5% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 111 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming bought a new position in Saia during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in Saia in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Saia by 69.0% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 142 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Saia by 52.9% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 208 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter.

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.