Insiders At Saia Sold US$8.0m In Stock, Alluding To Potential Weakness

In the last year, many Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) insiders sold a substantial stake in the company which may have sparked shareholders' attention. When evaluating insider transactions, knowing whether insiders are buying is usually more beneficial than knowing whether they are selling, as the latter can be open to many interpretations. However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.

While insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether.

See our latest analysis for Saia

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Saia

Over the last year, we can see that the biggest insider sale was by the President, Frederick Holzgrefe, for US$4.0m worth of shares, at about US$533 per share. While we don't usually like to see insider selling, it's more concerning if the sales take place at a lower price. It's of some comfort that this sale was conducted at a price well above the current share price, which is US$430. So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price.

In total, Saia insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

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Saia Insiders Are Selling The Stock

We've seen more insider selling than insider buying at Saia recently. In that time, Executive VP & Chief Customer Officer Raymond Ramu dumped US$334k worth of shares. Meanwhile Independent Director John Gainor bought US$150k worth. Since the selling really does outweigh the buying, we'd say that these transactions may suggest that some insiders feel the shares are not cheap.

Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Insiders own 0.3% of Saia shares, worth about US$30m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Do The Saia Insider Transactions Indicate?

The insider sales have outweighed the insider buying, at Saia, in the last three months. Despite some insider buying, the longer term picture doesn't make us feel much more positive. But since Saia is profitable and growing, we're not too worried by this. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. To assist with this, we've discovered 1 warning sign that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Saia.

Of course Saia may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.