Saia Inc (SAIA) stock analysis

P/E above its 5-year median

Saia's P/E of 32.2 is above its own 5-year median of 30.5.

P/E below the industry

Saia's P/E of 32.2 is below the Trucking and Courier Services, except Air median of 34.1.

EV/EBITDA below its 5-year median

Saia's EV/EBITDA of 14.2 is below its 5-year median of 15.0.

P/B above the industry

Saia's price-to-book of 3.21 is above the Trucking and Courier Services, except Air median of 1.83.

Trading above fair value

The share price of $339.57 is above our fair value estimate of $307.85.

Margin of safety under 20%

The price is 10.3% above fair value, so there is no margin of safety.

Revenue growing under 10% a year

Revenue grew 5.0% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.

EPS growing under 10% a year

Diluted EPS grew -10.8% a year over the last three fiscal years.

Earnings growth not accelerating

Net income grew -0.2% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 13.0% a year.

Growing faster than the industry

Revenue grew 9.3% over the last twelve months; the Trucking and Courier Services, except Air median is 7.6%.

Guidance issued

The latest outlook (full-year 2026 net capital expenditures, Oct 29, 2026) was issued for the first time, so it neither adds nor takes away points.

Gross margin trend

This company does not report gross profit.

Return on equity under 15%

Return on equity was 10.6% over the last twelve months and averaged 19.3% over five years; we look for 15% on both.

Return on capital over 10%

Return on invested capital was 10.6%, above the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.

Return on equity above the industry

Saia's return on equity of 10.6% is above the Trucking and Courier Services, except Air median of 3.4%.

Earnings grew over 5 years

Net income grew 13.0% a year on average over the last five fiscal years.

Net margin below its 5-year average

Net margin was 8.0% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of 11.1%.

Net margin above the industry

Saia's net margin of 8.0% is above the Trucking and Courier Services, except Air median of 2.1%.

Low debt

Debt is 3.5% of shareholders' equity, under the 40% we consider low.

Debt falling against equity

Debt to equity fell from 7.4% five years ago to 3.5%.

Debt covered by cash flow

Operating cash flow over the last twelve months equals 618% of total debt.

Interest well covered

Operating income covers interest expense 39.5 times.

Short-term assets cover short-term debts

Current assets are 1.83 times current liabilities.

Low bankruptcy risk

The Altman Z-score is 7.54; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.

No dividend

Saia has not paid a dividend in the last twelve months.

Yield against Treasuries

No dividend.

Yield against the market

No dividend.

Dividend stability

No dividend.

Earnings cover

No dividend.

Cash-flow cover

No dividend.