If You Had Bought Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) Stock Five Years Ago, You Could Pocket A 748% Gain Today
We think all investors should try to buy and hold high quality multi-year winners. And highest quality companies can see their share prices grow by huge amounts. To wit, the Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ:SAIA) share price has soared 748% over five years. If that doesn't get you thinking about long term investing, we don't know what will. It's also good to see the share price up 22% over the last quarter.
We love happy stories like this one. The company should be really proud of that performance!
See our latest analysis for Saia
There is no denying that markets are sometimes efficient, but prices do not always reflect underlying business performance. By comparing earnings per share (EPS) and share price changes over time, we can get a feel for how investor attitudes to a company have morphed over time.
During five years of share price growth, Saia achieved compound earnings per share (EPS) growth of 19% per year. This EPS growth is slower than the share price growth of 53% per year, over the same period. So it's fair to assume the market has a higher opinion of the business than it did five years ago. That's not necessarily surprising considering the five-year track record of earnings growth.
You can see below how EPS has changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).
It's probably worth noting that the CEO is paid less than the median at similar sized companies. But while CEO remuneration is always worth checking, the really important question is whether the company can grow earnings going forward. Before buying or selling a stock, we always recommend a close examination of historic growth trends, available here..
A Different Perspective
It's good to see that Saia has rewarded shareholders with a total shareholder return of 204% in the last twelve months. Since the one-year TSR is better than the five-year TSR (the latter coming in at 53% per year), it would seem that the stock's performance has improved in recent times. In the best case scenario, this may hint at some real business momentum, implying that now could be a great time to delve deeper. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand Saia better, we need to consider many other factors. Take risks, for example - Saia has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.
Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.
Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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.
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