Financial Review: Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) vs. Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA)

Union Pacific (NYSE:UNP) and Saia (NASDAQ:SAIA) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Volatility & Risk

Union Pacific has a beta of 0.96, indicating that its share price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Saia has a beta of 2.13, indicating that its share price is 113% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Union Pacific and Saia”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Union Pacific	$24.51 billion	7.07	$7.14 billion	$12.35	23.63
Saia	$3.23 billion	2.87	$255.04 million	$9.52	36.52

Union Pacific has higher revenue and earnings than Saia. Union Pacific is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Saia, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Union Pacific and Saia, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Union Pacific	0	7	13	2	2.77
Saia	1	7	13	0	2.57

Union Pacific presently has a consensus target price of $320.89, suggesting a potential upside of 9.96%. Saia has a consensus target price of $453.28, suggesting a potential upside of 30.39%. Given Saia’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Saia is more favorable than Union Pacific.

Profitability

This table compares Union Pacific and Saia’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Union Pacific	28.85%	38.46%	10.45%
Saia	8.19%	10.21%	7.48%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

80.4% of Union Pacific shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Union Pacific shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Saia shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Union Pacific beats Saia on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Union Pacific

Union Pacific Corporation, through its subsidiary, Union Pacific Railroad Company, operates in the railroad business in the United States. The company offers transportation services for grain and grain products, fertilizers, food and refrigerated products, and coal and renewables to grain processors, animal feeders, ethanol producers, renewable biofuel producers, and other agricultural users; and construction products, industrial chemicals, plastics, forest products, specialized products, metals and ores, petroleum, liquid petroleum gases, soda ash, and sand, as well as finished automobiles, automotive parts, and merchandise in intermodal containers. Union Pacific Corporation was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska.

About Saia

Saia, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a transportation company in North America. The company provides less-than-truckload services for shipments between 100 and 10,000 pounds; and other value-added services, including non-asset truckload, expedited, and logistics services. It also offers other value-added services, including non-asset truckload, expedited, and logistics services. As of December 31, 2022, it operated 191 owned and leased facilities; and owned approximately 6,200 tractors and 20,800 trailers. The company operates 194 terminals. The company was formerly known as SCS Transportation, Inc. and changed its name to Saia, Inc. in July 2006. Saia, Inc. was founded in 1924 and is headquartered in Johns Creek, Georgia.