Saia Reports Second Quarter Earnings per Share of $0.21

JOHNS CREEK, GA--(Marketwire - Jul 27, 2011) - Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAIA), a leading multi-regional less-than-truckload (LTL) carrier, today reported improved second quarter 2011 results on stronger revenue, improved pricing fundamentals and increased tonnage.

Second Quarter 2011 Compared to Second Quarter 2010 Results

• Revenues were $266 million, an increase of 15 percent.
• Operating income increased 41 percent to $8.3 million compared to $5.9 million.
• Earnings per share were $0.21 vs. $0.12.
• Operating ratio was 96.9 vs. 97.5.
• LTL tonnage increased by 4.5 percent as LTL shipments per workday were up 3.0 percent with a 1.5 percent increase in weight per shipment.
• LTL yield was up 9.6 percent due to the impact of higher fuel surcharge and measured pricing actions.

"I continue to be encouraged that improvements in the transportation landscape have permitted us to employ prudent pricing actions across our customer base. We continue to achieve increases in contract renewals which are greater this quarter than those secured in the first quarter. As in prior quarters, our measured pricing actions have resulted in deselecting a number of unprofitable accounts. This is part of a slow but steady improvement plan and is a welcome change from the challenging pricing and volume environment in which we had been operating the past several years," said Rick O'Dell, president and chief executive officer.

"The quarter was not without its challenges including significantly higher costs from health care, purchased transportation, maintenance and self insurance costs. We continue to focus on service and productivity initiatives which will produce improvements in terminal cost per freight bill. Our safety and cargo claims programs are at the heart of our initiatives across the network," continued O'Dell.

"As the result of increased demand by shippers in our newer geography, we took the opportunity to open a new terminal in Bloomington, IL, allowing us to offer 100% coverage of Illinois. The new terminal in Bloomington supports our strategy of providing 100% coverage of the states in which we operate and contributes to our efforts to build density in our geographic footprint.

"We also continue to move forward with our initiatives to improve pricing and remain focused on our cost and quality initiatives. As always, Saia's dedicated employees remain focused on providing best in class customer service. We believe Saia is well positioned to take advantage of any future industry consolidations and to capitalize on what appears to be improving industry fundamentals," O'Dell said.

Year to Date 2011 Compared to Year to Date 2010 Results

• Revenues were $509 million compared to $444 million in the prior year period, an increase of 15 percent.
• Operating income was $12.3 million compared to $3.7 million in the prior year period.
• Net income was $4.1 million compared to net loss of $1.2 million in the prior year period.
• Earnings per share were $0.25 compared to losses per share of $0.08 in the prior year period.
• Operating ratio was 97.6 vs. 99.2 in the prior year period.

Financial Position and Capital Expenditures
Total debt was $81.4 million at June 30, 2011. Net of the Company's $10.7 million cash balance at quarter-end, net debt to total capital was 25.1 percent. This compares to total debt of $90.0 million and net debt to total capital of 27.4 percent in the prior year quarter.

Net capital expenditures for the first six months of 2011 were $20.6 million. This compares to $0.2 million in the prior year period. The Company is planning net capital expenditures in 2011 of approximately $63.0 million. This expenditure level reflects replacement and growth units of tractors and the Company's continued investment in technology.

Conference Call
The Company will hold a conference call to discuss these results today at 12:00 noon Eastern Time. This call will be webcast live via the Company web site at www.saia.com. To participate in the call, please dial 1-800-723-6498 or dial 785-830-7989 for international calls and use conference ID #4878983. Callers should dial in five to 10 minutes in advance of the conference call. A replay of the call will be available two hours after the completion of the call through August 5, 2011. The replay is available by dialing 1-888-203-1112 or 719-457-0820.

The webcast is also being distributed through the Thomson StreetEvents Network. Individual investors can listen to the call at www.earnings.com, Thomson's individual investor portal, powered by StreetEvents. Institutional investors can access the call via Thomson StreetEvents (www.streetevents.com), a password-protected event management site.

Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAIA) is a less-than-truckload provider of regional, interregional and guaranteed services covering 34 states. With headquarters in Georgia and a network of 148 terminals, Saia employs 7,900 people. For more information, visit the Investor Relations section at www.saia.com.

The Securities and Exchange Commission encourages companies to disclose forward-looking information so that investors can better understand the future prospects of a company and make informed investment decisions. This news release contains these types of statements, which are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Words such as "anticipate," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend," "may," "plan," "predict," "believe," "should" and similar words or expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements reflect the present expectation of future events of our management as of the date of this news release and are subject to a number of important factors, risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in any forward-looking statements. These factors, risks, assumptions and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, general economic conditions including downturns in the business cycle; the creditworthiness of our customers and their ability to pay for services; competitive initiatives and pricing pressures, including in connection with fuel surcharge; the Company's need for capital and uncertainty of the current credit markets; the possibility of defaults under the Company's debt agreements (including violation of financial covenants); possible issuance of equity which would dilute stock ownership; indemnification obligations associated with the 2006 sale of Jevic Transportation, Inc.; the effect of litigation including class action lawsuits; cost and availability of qualified drivers, fuel, purchased transportation, real property, revenue equipment and other assets; governmental regulations, including but not limited to Hours of Service, engine emissions, the "Compliance, Safety, Accountability" (CSA) initiative, compliance with legislation requiring companies to evaluate their internal control over financial reporting, changes in interpretation of accounting principles and Homeland Security; dependence on key employees; inclement weather; labor relations, including the adverse impact should a portion of the Company's workforce become unionized; effectiveness of Company-specific performance improvement initiatives; terrorism risks; self-insurance claims and other expense volatility; increased costs as a result of recently enacted healthcare reform legislation and other financial, operational and legal risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in the Company's SEC filings. As a result of these and other factors, no assurance can be given as to our future results and achievements. A forward looking statement is neither a prediction nor a guarantee of future events or circumstances and those future events or circumstances may not occur.

Saia, Inc. and Subsidiary
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(Amounts in thousands)
(Unaudited)
			June 30,				December 31,
			2011				2010
ASSETS
CURRENT ASSETS:
	Cash and cash equivalents		$	10,716			$	29,045
	Accounts receivable, net			114,661				94,569
	Prepaid expenses and other			30,019				29,882
		Total current assets		155,396				153,496
PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT:
	Cost			632,669				610,572
	Less: accumulated depreciation			335,177				319,634
		Net property and equipment		297,492				290,938
OTHER ASSETS				7,261				7,723
		Total assets	$	460,149			$	452,157
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
CURRENT LIABILITIES:
	Accounts payable		$	41,146			$	37,745
	Wages and employees' benefits			22,937				19,101
	Other current liabilities			31,945				31,777
	Current portion of long-term debt			19,643				17,143
		Total current liabilities		115,671				105,766
OTHER LIABILITIES:
	Long-term debt, less current portion			61,786				72,857
	Deferred income taxes			42,077				39,077
	Claims, insurance and other			29,239				28,099
		Total other liabilities		133,102				140,033
STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY:
	Common stock			16				16
	Additional paid-in capital			203,153				202,751
	Deferred compensation trust			(2,182	)			(2,727	)
	Retained earnings			10,389				6,318
		Total stockholders' equity		211,376				206,358
		Total liabilities and stockholders' equity	$	460,149			$	452,157

Saia, Inc. and Subsidiary
Consolidated Statements of Operations
For the Quarter and Six Months Ended June 30, 2011 and 2010
(Amounts in thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)
				Second Quarter								Six Months
				2011				2010				2011				2010
OPERATING REVENUE				$	265,901			$	231,342			$	508,919			$	443,566
OPERATING EXPENSES:
	Salaries, wages and employees' benefits				130,669				121,421				253,409				238,885
	Purchased transportation				24,653				22,011				45,719				39,446
	Fuel, operating expenses and supplies				76,186				58,380				146,127				114,282
	Operating taxes and licenses				9,600				9,173				18,957				18,387
	Claims and insurance				7,836				5,411				15,088				10,496
	Depreciation and amortization				8,803				9,222				17,376				18,527
	Operating gains, net				(102	)			(150	)			(103	)			(206	)
		Total operating expenses			257,645				225,468				496,573				439,817
OPERATING INCOME					8,256				5,874				12,346				3,749
NONOPERATING EXPENSES:
	Interest expense				2,955				2,685				5,953				5,758
	Other, net				(19	)			63				(110	)			(252	)
		Nonoperating expenses, net			2,936				2,748				5,843				5,506
INCOME (LOSS) BEFORE INCOME TAXES					5,320				3,126				6,503				(1,757	)
Income tax expense (benefit)					1,962				1,146				2,432				(514	)
NET INCOME (LOSS)				$	3,358			$	1,980			$	4,071			$	(1,243	)
Average common shares outstanding - basic					15,791				15,703				15,780				15,700
Average common shares outstanding - diluted					16,188				16,124				16,167				15,700
Basic earnings (loss) per share				$	0.21			$	0.13			$	0.26			$	(0.08	)
Diluted earnings (loss) per share				$	0.21			$	0.12			$	0.25			$	(0.08	)

Saia, Inc. and Subsidiary
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
For the Six Months Ended June 30, 2011 and 2010
(Amounts in thousands)
(Unaudited)
				Six Months
				2011				2010
OPERATING ACTIVITIES:
Net cash provided by operating activities				$	10,711			$	5,049
		Net cash provided by operating activities			10,711				5,049
INVESTING ACTIVITIES:
	Acquisition of property and equipment				(20,893	)			(560	)
	Proceeds from disposal of property and equipment				275				337
		Net cash used in investing activities			(20,618	)			(223	)
FINANCING ACTIVITIES:
	Repayment of long-term debt				(8,571	)			–
	Proceeds from stock option exercises				149				57
		Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities			(8,422	)			57
NET (DECREASE) INCREASE IN CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS					(18,329	)			4,883
CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, BEGINNING OF PERIOD					29,045				8,746
CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS, END OF PERIOD				$	10,716			$	13,629

Saia, Inc. and Subsidiary
Financial Information
For the Quarters Ended June 30, 2011 and 2010
(Amounts in thousands)
(Unaudited)
													Second Quarter
				Second Quarter						%			Amount/Workday				%
				2011			2010			Change			2011		2010		Change
Workdays													64		64
Operating ratio				96.9	%		97.5	%
F/S Revenue		LTL		245,530			213,850			14.8			3,836.4		3,341.4		14.8
		TL		20,371			17,492			16.5			318.3		273.3		16.5
		Total		265,901			231,342			14.9			4,154.7		3,614.7		14.9
Revenue excluding		LTL		245,601			214,308			14.6			3,837.5		3,348.6		14.6
revenue recognition		TL		20,377			17,530			16.2			318.4		273.9		16.2
adjustment		Total		265,978			231,838			14.7			4,155.9		3,622.5		14.7
Tonnage		LTL		959			918			4.5			14.99		14.34		4.5
		TL		189			186			1.4			2.95		2.91		1.4
		Total		1,148			1,104			4.0			17.94		17.25		4.0
Shipments		LTL		1,691			1,642			3.0			26.42		25.66		3.0
		TL		27			26			1.9			0.42		0.41		1.9
		Total		1,718			1,669			2.9			26.84		26.08		2.9
Revenue/cwt		LTL		12.80			11.68			9.6
		TL		5.39			4.71			14.6
		Total		11.58			10.50			10.3
Revenue/shipment		LTL		145.24			130.48			11.3
		TL		755.80			662.24			14.1
		Total		154.82			138.91			11.4
Pounds/shipment		LTL		1,134			1,117			1.5
		TL		14,013			14,071			(0.4	)
		Total		1,337			1,323			1.0