How to Buy Saga Shares UK in 2022 – A Beginner’s Guide

Saga plc is a British company that provides insurance, package tours, cruise holidays, and personal finance services in the United Kingdom for those aged over 50. The company was founded in 1950 and was formerly known as Saga Limited, however, in 2014 the company has officially changed its name to Saga plc. Saga has more than 2.7 million customers and has announced a total revenue of £841.50M in 2019.

In this guide, we cover the basics about investing in Saga and review some popular UK share brokers.

Where to Buy Saga Shares

The most common way for UK investors to buy shares is to find a registered broker that connects clients to the London Stock Exchange. This way, you will be able to place an order to buy Saga shares and you will get physical securities that allow you to become a shareholder of this company. However, there are many stock brokers to choose from, so finding the right one for you isn’t always easy.

Why Do People Invest in Saga?

So far, it’s been a painful journey for Saga as shares have fallen 61% in 2020 only. Investors’ confidence in the company is low and the company is facing many challenges ahead. But Saga has recently released its earnings reports that gave investors new hopes.

Saga Offers a Wide Range of Services and Products

We cannot ignore the fact that Saga plc is in a delicate financial situation. In the past, the company had a niche role in the market for clients aged over 50, but Saga’s management team has realized that the company must adapt and expanded its overall range of services and products.

As a result, Saga operates in three segments (Insurance, Travel, and Emerging Businesses) and delivers a huge range of insurance packages, tours & cruise holiday products, and personal finance solutions for all ages and purposes.

Saga also runs the UK’s best selling monthly magazine, the Saga Magazine, which has a total circulation of 627,000 and a monthly readership of over one million. This fundamental shift in Saga’s strategy can change the direction of the company.

Dividends

The company pays dividends to its shareholders. In 2020, investors of Saga received a dividend yield of 3.10%, and the company, so far, has shown a track record of consistent payments.

Saga plc states on its website that dividends typically paid twice a year, and these can be paid directly to investors’ bank accounts or clients can reinvest the dividends through a Dividend Reinvestment Plan (DP).

Stable Revenues

Overall, the company has reported solid results with revenues of £797.30, almost in line with analysts’ expectations.

Looking ahead, analysts predict that the company is expected to significantly increase its sales in 2023. Having said that, time will how Saga will be affected by the COVID-19, and whether the company can prevail a second wave of the virus.

About Saga Shares

Company and Share History

Saga was founded in 1951 by Sidney de Haan who had the vision to create a travel company from a hotel in Folkestone, Kent. The initial service offered by Saga was off-peak low-budget holidays to retired people. But throughout the years, the company expanded its products and services and nowadays operates in three divisions: travel, insurance, and emerging businesses.

The company offers packages of a motor, home, travel, pet, Private Medical Insurance (‘PMI’), and many more. Saga also offers clients a wide range of holiday experiences with a focus on Saga cruises and built-in vacation packages. Lastly, the company has recently developed a new division called Emerging Businesses division which comprises Personal Finance and domiciliary Healthcare services.

In addition, Saga distributes a subscription magazine called the Saga Magazine, which has an estimated circulation of 627,000. The Saga magazine has been said to be the “United Kingdom’s biggest selling monthly subscription title”.

As of 2019, Saga has 4,120 employees and 2.7 million customers. The company went public in 2014 and is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) under the ticker symbol SAGA.L. Saga has a total market capitalization of $231.581M.

Saga Share Price History and Performance 

Saga plc shares trade on the London Stock Exchange since the 23 of May 2014. The share price of Saga reached its all-time high of £$225.30 back in September 2019, but overall, the stock has been in a downtrend since its IPO, and currently trades at £20.64, a bit higher than the all-time low of £14.50.

The saga share price was highly affected by the coronavirus pandemic outbreak early on this year as the company’s main income derives from traveling and tourism. So far in 2020, the company’s Year-To-Date (YTD) return is -61.74% and its one-year return is -44%.

How to Buy Saga Shares 

If you do want to buy Saga shares, we’re now going to walk you through the process of doing so.

If you choose to buy Saga shares on a different platform, the process will remain similar.

Step 1: Search for Saga Shares

First, you’ll have to visit the platform and sign up for a free trading account. Then, fill in your personal detail, submit the necessary documentation that verifies your identity, and deposit funds through one of the provided methods.

Once your account has been approved and the funds are visible in your account balance, simply navigate to the search bar at the top of the screen and click ‘Saga’.

Step 2: Click on ‘Trade’

You will be immediately transferred to the Saga share page where you can analyze the stock and place a buying order. Whenever you are ready to buy Saga shares, click on ‘Trade’ to open a new order.

Step 3: Buy Saga Shares

Finally, you can set an order and send it to the markets. There are several things you’ll need to set before entering a buying trade. Those include the amount of the trade, in addition to the leverage ratio, the type of order (market or limit order), and a stop-loss rate if you’re trading CFDs. When you are confident with the parameters, click on the ‘Open Trade’ button.

Conclusion 

Saga plc is not only a diversified company but also a company that offers an essential service for its main target audience of those aged 50 and above. This company has been operating since 1951 and has developed a wide range of products and services that include insurance products, package tours & cruise holiday, personal finance, and many more.

True, the company is facing some major challenges, reflected by the drop in its share price. According to MarketBeat, the consensus price target is £40.33 and the Financial Time has a median share price forecast of £47.50, at the time of writing. That is an increase of 130.1%.

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