Jefferies Financial Group Issues Positive Forecast for Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Stock Price

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) had its price objective hoisted by stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $525.00 to $560.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 26.96% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $480.00 price objective on shares of Saia in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Saia from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $511.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Saia from $515.00 to $620.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Susquehanna reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $530.00 price objective (down previously from $565.00) on shares of Saia in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Saia from $481.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $515.18.

Saia Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SAIA traded down $7.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $441.09. 43,672 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 294,691. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.51, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. Saia has a twelve month low of $358.90 and a twelve month high of $628.34. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $512.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $459.56.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 25th. The transportation company reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.53 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $842.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $839.82 million. Saia had a return on equity of 18.00% and a net margin of 11.83%. Saia’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.67 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Saia will post 13.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Saia news, EVP Rohit Lal sold 1,120 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $627,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,270 shares in the company, valued at $4,631,200. This trade represents a 11.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saia

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Saia by 2.6% in the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 869,859 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $412,566,000 after acquiring an additional 22,143 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Saia by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 805,597 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $352,255,000 after buying an additional 24,351 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its stake in Saia by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 692,405 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $302,761,000 after buying an additional 64,351 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Saia by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 471,667 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $206,292,000 after buying an additional 6,456 shares during the period. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its stake in Saia by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 303,582 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $132,744,000 after buying an additional 31,991 shares during the period.

Saia Company Profile

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.