Saia

SAIA

Market cap $8.38B

Investors face two disruptive phases: AI-driven labor market weakness, followed by new industry emergence, requiring strategic portfolio diversification. Favor high-quality stocks and income-generating assets, focusing beyond S&P 500 index funds to outperform in a potentially lower-return market environment. Key opportunities include stock exchanges (CME, ICE, MIAX), cyclical value (railroads, LTL trucking), and energy/data center infrastructure (EQT, pipelines, BIP).

JOHNS CREEK, Ga., Dec. 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Saia, Inc. (Nasdaq: SAIA), a leading transportation provider offering national less-than-truckload (LTL), non-asset truckload, expedited and logistics services, is providing LTL shipment and tonnage data for the first two months of the fourth quarter. In October 2025, LTL shipments per workday declined 3.4%, LTL tonnage per workday declined 3.3% and LTL weight per shipment increased 0.1% to 1,353 pounds compared to 1,352 pounds in October 2024. In November 2025, LTL shipments per workday increased 2.6%, LTL tonnage per workday increased 1.8% and LTL weight per shipment declined 0.8% to 1,346 pounds compared to 1,357 pounds in November 2024.

The small cap team initiated a new investment position in Hexcel Corporation. Hexcel is a global leader in advanced composite materials. We initiated a position in Charles River Labs in Q3. CRL is a high-quality company in the drug discovery and development outsourcing space. Small cap exited Saia this quarter. The company has faced a challenging macroeconomic environment for LTL (less-than-truckload) pricing.

The trucking industry has been in a multi-year cyclical downturn. At the same time, Saia has been expanding rapidly, which has led to higher costs and weaker profit margins. Terex has faced headwinds, including weak demand in its core segments, rising tariffs and interest expenses, and a soft European market. Air Lease's primary business operations include aircraft leasing, fleet management, and overall management of its aircraft portfolios to optimize leasing versus funding spreads and opportunistic gains on sale.

The Zacks Industry Rank for the Transportation-Truck industry paints a dull picture, mainly owing to the slowdown in freight demand. We believe stocks like JBHT and SAIA are better positioned to escape industry challenges.

Saia remains resilient amid macroeconomic volatility, benefiting from LTL market undercapacity and strong fundamentals despite weak demand. SAIA's robust balance sheet, prudent capex, and effective cost management support high sustainability and operational flexibility in a challenging environment. Valuation remains attractive, with SAIA trading below historical averages and technicals signaling emerging buying opportunities despite a flat price trend.

Saia, Inc. ( SAIA ) Q3 2025 Earnings Call October 30, 2025 10:00 AM EDT Company Participants Matthew Batteh - Executive VP, CFO & Secretary Frederick Holzgrefe - President, CEO & Director Conference Call Participants Christian Wetherbee - Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, Research Division Jonathan Chappell - Evercore ISI Institutional Equities, Research Division Scott Group - Wolfe Research, LLC Jordan Alliger - Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Research Division Ken Hoexter - BofA Securities, Research Division Thomas Wadewitz - UBS Investment Bank, Research Division Ravi Shanker - Morgan Stanley, Research Division Bascome Majors - Susquehanna Financial Group, LLLP, Research Division J. Bruce Chan - Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, Research Division Brian Ossenbeck - JPMorgan Chase & Co, Research Division Patrick Brown - Raymond James & Associates, Inc., Research Division Eric Morgan - Barclays Bank PLC, Research Division Richa Harnain Ariel Rosa - Citigroup Inc., Research Division Presentation Operator Good day, and welcome to the Saia, Inc. Third Quarter 2025 Earnings Conference Call.

Although the revenue and EPS for Saia (SAIA) give a sense of how its business performed in the quarter ended September 2025, it might be worth considering how some key metrics compare with Wall Street estimates and the year-ago numbers.

While the top- and bottom-line numbers for Saia (SAIA) give a sense of how the business performed in the quarter ended September 2025, it could be worth looking at how some of its key metrics compare to Wall Street estimates and year-ago values.

Saia (SAIA) came out with quarterly earnings of $2.81 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.54 per share. This compares to earnings of $3.46 per share a year ago.