Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New Investment in Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 102,064 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,514,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Saia by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,685 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,502,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Saia in the fourth quarter worth $15,577,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Saia by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 226,137 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $103,057,000 after purchasing an additional 4,972 shares in the last quarter. Pacific Global Investment Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Saia by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Pacific Global Investment Management Co. now owns 3,602 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,642,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in shares of Saia by 47.8% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 201 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Transactions at Saia

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 shares were sold at an average price of $487.34, for a total value of $3,671,619.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 17,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Kelly W. Benton sold 460 shares of Saia stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $230,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 4,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,143,500. The trade was a 9.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 9,493 shares of company stock worth $4,646,181. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on SAIA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Saia from $492.00 to $563.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Saia from $560.00 to $540.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Saia from $530.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Saia from $456.00 to $478.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Saia from $550.00 to $510.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $526.39.

Saia Price Performance

SAIA stock opened at $361.59 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $459.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $468.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Saia, Inc. has a 52 week low of $358.90 and a 52 week high of $624.55.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.87 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $789.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $794.69 million. Saia had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 11.28%. Saia’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.33 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Saia, Inc. will post 15.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Saia 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.