Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ:FWRD – Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on the stock from $19.00 to $27.00. The stock had previously closed at $15.41, but opened at $17.69. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the stock. Forward Air shares last traded at $17.10, with a volume of 196,368 shares changing hands.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Forward Air from $42.00 to $18.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Forward Air in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Forward Air from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Forward Air presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $22.50.

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Hedge Funds Weigh In On Forward Air

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Forward Air by 1,179.7% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 321,092 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $6,451,000 after buying an additional 296,001 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 7.0% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 10,009 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $201,000 after buying an additional 654 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Forward Air by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,875 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Forward Air by 64.2% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 73,040 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,467,000 after acquiring an additional 28,564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Forward Air by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 21,431 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $526,000 after acquiring an additional 1,323 shares during the period. 97.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Forward Air Trading Up 6.8%

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $13.27 and a 200-day moving average of $18.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.98, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.23. The company has a market cap of $520.55 million, a PE ratio of -5.66 and a beta of 1.36.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The transportation company reported ($1.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.35) by ($0.74). Forward Air had a negative return on equity of 41.21% and a negative net margin of 3.71%.The business had revenue of $582.05 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $620.23 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($1.68) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Forward Air Corporation will post -1.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Forward Air Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Forward Air Corporation is a leading North American provider of expedited ground transportation and related logistics services, specializing in time-sensitive shipments. The company offers a comprehensive suite of solutions including less-than-truckload (LTL) expedited freight, consolidation and distribution services, container drayage, and final-mile delivery. By integrating transportation management with warehousing, inventory control, and technology-driven tracking, Forward Air supports customers across a variety of industries such as manufacturing, retail, automotive and chemicals.

Founded in 1981 and headquartered in Greeneville, Tennessee, Forward Air has developed a broad network of service centers, terminals and rail ramps throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.

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