Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) Position Lifted by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) by 5.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 119,033 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,025 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned about 0.45% of Saia worth $54,247,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Saia in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Saia by 172.7% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 60 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of Saia in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Saia by 76.6% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 113 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in Saia during the fourth quarter worth $64,000.

Saia Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SAIA opened at $349.43 on Tuesday. Saia, Inc. has a 1 year low of $342.68 and a 1 year high of $624.55. The firm has a market cap of $9.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.86, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.89. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $428.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $464.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.57.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The transportation company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by ($0.03). Saia had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 11.28%. The firm had revenue of $789.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $794.69 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.33 earnings per share. Saia’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Saia, Inc. will post 15.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Saia from $492.00 to $563.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Saia from $600.00 to $535.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Saia from $566.00 to $558.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Saia in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Saia from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $524.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Saia has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $513.06.

Insider Activity at Saia

In other Saia news, CAO Kelly W. Benton sold 460 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total value of $230,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,143,500. This represents a 9.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Frederick J. Holzgrefe III sold 7,534 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $487.34, for a total value of $3,671,619.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 17,645 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,599,114.30. This represents a 29.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,493 shares of company stock valued at $4,646,181 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

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.