Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Stake in Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 61,457 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 489 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Saia were worth $28,008,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SAIA. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Saia by 319.1% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 285 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $135,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Saia by 148.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 367 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $167,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group purchased a new stake in Saia during the third quarter worth $213,000. Apollon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Saia during the fourth quarter worth $252,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Saia by 63.8% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 593 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 231 shares during the period.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Saia Price Performance

Shares of SAIA opened at $406.65 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $480.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $466.55. The company has a market capitalization of $10.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 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 1.57. Saia, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $358.90 and a fifty-two week high of $628.34.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SAIA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Saia from $465.00 to $495.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $600.00 price objective on shares of Saia in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Saia from $600.00 to $565.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Saia from $525.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Raymond James decreased their price objective on Saia from $560.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $535.41.

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.