Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Makes New Investment in Forward Air Co. (NASDAQ:FWRD)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Forward Air Co. (NASDAQ:FWRD) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 285,203 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,198,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.99% of Forward Air at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Forward Air by 688.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 326,921 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,573,000 after buying an additional 285,465 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Forward Air during the fourth quarter worth about $815,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 97,148 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,133,000 after purchasing an additional 6,629 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Forward Air in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $11,140,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 755,843 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $24,376,000 after purchasing an additional 79,960 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on FWRD. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Forward Air from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Forward Air from $32.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Forward Air from $29.00 to $22.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Forward Air in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Forward Air presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.25.

Forward Air Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of Forward Air stock opened at $14.52 on Tuesday. Forward Air Co. has a 52-week low of $9.79 and a 52-week high of $40.92. The company has a 50 day moving average of $18.71 and a 200 day moving average of $28.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.07. The company has a market capitalization of $441.45 million, a P/E ratio of -0.61 and a beta of 1.11.

Forward Air Company Profile

Forward Air Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an asset-light freight and logistics company in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Expedited Freight and Intermodal. The Expedited Freight segment provides expedited regional, inter-regional, and national less-than-truckload services; local pick-up and delivery services; and other services, which include shipment consolidation and deconsolidation, warehousing, customs brokerage, and other handling.