Saia, Inc. (SAIA) Business Profile

What it does

Saia is a transportation company that moves freight for businesses. Founded in 1924, it is headquartered in Johns Creek, Georgia, and led by President and Chief Executive Officer Frederick J. Holzgrefe, III. Its main business is less-than-truckload, or LTL, shipping: carrying freight that does not require a whole truck on its own.

In an LTL network, a carrier picks up shipments from multiple customers, combines them at local freight terminals and moves them between terminals before delivering them to their destinations. Saia LTL Freight primarily handles shipments between 100 and 10,000 pounds. Its services include time-definite and expedited options for customers with specific delivery requirements.

Saia operates its LTL business as a single integrated organization. It provides direct service to the 48 contiguous states and reaches Canada and Mexico through relationships with third-party interline carriers. It also offers brokered truckload, expedited transportation and other logistics services across North America.

The network includes terminals, tractors, trailers and employees who pick up, sort, move and deliver freight. As of December 31, 2025, Saia operated 213 owned and leased terminals. It also had approximately 7,700 tractors and 26,500 trailers, including equipment acquired with finance leases. Saia uses technology for activities including network optimization, customer service and operational analysis.

How it makes money

Saia earns most of its revenue by transporting LTL shipments. Approximately 97% of its revenue comes from LTL freight; brokered truckload, expedited transportation and other logistics services provide additional revenue. Its logistics business also generates truckload volume, and Saia may participate in the truckload market to fill empty miles on lanes that are not at capacity.

Revenue was $3.2 billion in 2025 and $982.5 million in the third quarter of 2026.

The company’s results depend on how many shipments and how much tonnage move through its network, the prices it receives and its ability to match costs to changing volumes. Saia recognizes freight revenue over the transit time of a shipment, rather than treating the entire charge as revenue at pickup or delivery.

Prices include base freight charges and fuel surcharges. The fuel surcharge program adjusts total charges as the national average diesel price changes; surcharges are typically updated weekly. Customers may negotiate the balance between base rates and fuel surcharges as part of their individual contracts.

For 2025 and 2024, approximately 75 percent of operating revenue was subject to customer-specific price adjustment negotiations throughout the year. The remaining 25 percent was subject to a general rate increase based on market conditions. Saia implemented a 5.9 percent general rate increase on October 1, 2025 for customers subject to those increases.

In the third quarter of 2026, revenue per shipment excluding fuel surcharge increased 5.8% year-over-year. Saia also seeks to improve profitability by managing the mix of freight it accepts and increasing shipment density within its existing network.

Customers and how it sells

Saia serves shippers that need freight picked up and delivered across its network. Its customers include regional and national accounts and third-party logistics partners. Saia serves customers across industries, including some exposed to data center activity. The company does not identify an individual customer or give a customer concentration share in its business discussion.

Saia LTL Freight provides direct service throughout the 48 contiguous states. Third-party interline relationships extend its LTL service to Canada and Mexico. Its broader logistics offerings also cover North America. Customers can use time-definite and expedited LTL options as well as brokered truckload and other transportation services.

Saia’s local terminals bring shipments together for movement through the network. The company said its network had 219 facilities at the time of its third-quarter 2026 discussion. It also said more than 60% of zip codes were within a 50 mi radius of a Saia terminal.

Customers interact with the company through sales and service teams, while its technology investments include customer service enhancements and shipment visibility. Saia introduced its REV initiative in June; the company said it improved transit times in more than 2,000 lanes. Saia seeks customers that value reliable delivery and is working to increase business with both new and existing accounts.

Suppliers and costs

Saia operates a transportation network rather than a manufacturing business. Its principal operating costs include salaries, wages and benefits; purchased transportation; fuel; equipment and facility maintenance; claims and insurance; and depreciation. It also invests in terminals, tractors, trailers and technology. Saia uses both owned and leased facilities and includes equipment acquired with finance leases in its fleet.

Purchased transportation supplements the company’s own linehaul operations, which move freight between terminals. In the third quarter of 2026, truck and rail purchased transportation miles represented 15.7% of total line haul miles. Saia said rail represented nearly 39% of its total purchased transportation miles in that quarter. The company does not name a sole-source supplier in its discussion of the business.

Operating income decreased to $352.2 million in 2025 from $482.2 million in 2024. The decrease primarily reflected higher salaries, wages and benefits, depreciation, and claims and insurance costs. Saia is self-insured for certain levels of several claims, including workers’ compensation, cargo loss and group health claims. The company expects cost inflation to continue and does not expect relief in health insurance and benefits costs.

Competitive position

Saia competes with national and regional LTL carriers, as well as truckload and private fleets, small-package carriers, final-mile delivery services, railroads, air freight carriers, third-party logistics providers and emerging digital competitors. It does not name individual competitors in its competitive discussion.

Carriers compete on service quality, price, geographic coverage, range of services, responsiveness and operating flexibility. Some competitors have more equipment, broader networks, wider service offerings or greater financial resources than Saia. Customers may seek bids from multiple carriers, reduce the number of approved providers or use alternative delivery arrangements.

The company said it has double digit market share in its Houston markets and Texas, where it has operated longest. Saia also said its REV initiative improved transit times in more than 2,000 lanes and that its third-quarter 2026 cargo claims ratio was 0.3%.

Our reading: Saia’s terminal network is a meaningful barrier to entry because a large LTL operation requires facilities, equipment, technology and enough freight density to use them efficiently. Our reading: Its service and pricing relationships can support that network, but their protection is less certain because shippers have alternatives and can solicit competing bids. Our reading: Investments in technology can support service and operating efficiency, although competitors must also invest in technology and can offer similar capabilities.

Growth opportunities

Saia’s growth strategy centers on adding shipment volume and density within its existing geography while expanding its terminal network. The company plans to invest in terminals, tractors, trailers and technology to handle additional volume in both new and existing markets. It also uses targeted sales and marketing and may consider acquisitions that extend its reach, add density or bring complementary customer relationships.

The company has largely grown organically in recent years and intends to continue doing so. Over the five years through 2025, it invested in excess of $2.5 billion in capital expenditures, primarily in real estate, revenue equipment and technology. Saia expects 2026 net capital expenditures to be $350 million to $400 million, including replacement equipment and investments to support growth.

Since the beginning of 2022, Saia said it had added 45 terminals and relocated or expanded more than 25 others. The company said those investments increased operational door count by approximately 32% and tractor and trailer capacity by more than 35%.

Saia is also pursuing improved transit times and shipment visibility through REV. It said lanes receiving faster transit times experienced volume growth during the initiative’s initial phase. Newer facilities remained below the company average in total despite improving year-over-year; Saia expects continued improvement as those markets mature and customer relationships develop.

Structural risks

• Economic and pricing pressure. Saia’s business is closely correlated with non-service sectors of the economy. Carriers may reduce prices during recessions or slower growth, while customers can put business out to bid or consolidate their carrier lists.
• Costs and claims. Wages, benefits, fuel, insurance and purchased transportation can rise. Saia self-insures certain claims, and changes in claim severity or medical cost inflation can cause volatility in its accruals and earnings.
• Network utilization and expansion. The company must match operating costs to shifting freight volumes and execute its geographic expansion. New facilities require employees and capacity before volumes have built up, and their performance can depend on the freight environment.
• Labor and equipment availability. Saia depends on qualified drivers, dock workers and mechanics, as well as access to equipment and purchased transportation. Supply-chain disruptions can delay new equipment deliveries.
• Technology and regulation. Technology failures or cyber incidents could disrupt operations or create liabilities. Driver, safety, environmental and other regulatory changes can require operating changes or increase the cost of providing transportation services.
• Competition and investment. Some competitors have broader networks or greater resources. Technological changes may require additional spending, and Saia may be unable to select the right solutions or recover investment costs through higher prices.

Bottom line

Our reading

Saia is a capital- and labor-intensive freight carrier whose economics depend on filling a national terminal network with shipments at prices that cover its costs. Our reading: Its established infrastructure and growing reach support its competitive position, but the payoff from expansion depends on building density while managing wages, claims, fuel and other expenses. Newer facilities’ performance and customers’ willingness to pay for service are important parts of that equation.