Retirement Systems of Alabama Acquires 1,025 Shares of Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA)

Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its holdings in shares of Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,125 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,025 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Saia were worth $17,830,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SAIA. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Saia by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 127,896 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $58,286,000 after buying an additional 9,435 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in Saia by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 613 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $279,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its position in Saia by 813.5% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 29,946 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $13,647,000 after purchasing an additional 26,668 shares during the period. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Saia by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 7,090 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,230,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Saia by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,982 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,815,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Rohit Lal sold 1,120 shares of Saia stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total transaction of $627,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,270 shares in the company, valued at $4,631,200. The trade was a 11.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on SAIA shares. Raymond James reduced their target price on Saia from $560.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Saia from $566.00 to $558.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays lowered their price objective on Saia from $620.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Saia from $525.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Saia in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $535.41.

Saia Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of Saia stock opened at $508.47 on Friday. Saia, Inc. has a 12-month low of $358.90 and a 12-month high of $628.34. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $492.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $462.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.32, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.79.

Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 7th. The transportation company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.87 by ($0.03). Saia had a return on equity of 18.00% and a net margin of 11.83%. The firm had revenue of $789.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $794.69 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.33 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Saia, Inc. will post 13.47 EPS for the current year.

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.