Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) Given New $27.00 Price Target at Stifel Nicolaus

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) had its price target hoisted by equities research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $19.00 to $27.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 61.87% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Forward Air from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Forward Air in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target on Forward Air from $42.00 to $18.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Forward Air currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.50.

Forward Air Stock Up 8.2%

NASDAQ FWRD traded up $1.27 during trading on Thursday, reaching $16.68. 361,144 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 966,506. The firm has a market cap of $527.50 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.69 and a beta of 1.36. Forward Air has a 12-month low of $7.86 and a 12-month high of $32.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.98, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $18.04.

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

Institutional Trading of Forward Air

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ancora Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 8.5% in the third quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,475,055 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $37,820,000 after purchasing an additional 116,012 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in Forward Air by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 949,784 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $23,745,000 after buying an additional 19,854 shares during the last quarter. Melqart Asset Management UK Ltd increased its position in shares of Forward Air by 122.3% during the fourth quarter. Melqart Asset Management UK Ltd now owns 849,876 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $21,247,000 after acquiring an additional 467,482 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its stake in shares of Forward Air by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 784,731 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $19,618,000 after acquiring an additional 28,693 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Forward Air by 24.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 611,316 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $15,002,000 after acquiring an additional 121,190 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.03% of the company’s stock.

About Forward Air

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.