Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) Shares Down 4.7% – Here’s Why

Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ:FWRD) fell 4.7% during trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $17.58 and last traded at $17.4750. 230,317 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 72% from the average session volume of 819,258 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.33.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on FWRD shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Forward Air from a “sell (e+)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 target price (up from $27.00) on shares of Forward Air in a research report on Tuesday. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Forward Air from $29.00 to $25.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Forward Air from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Forward Air from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $26.50.

Forward Air Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.98. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $16.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.38. The firm has a market cap of $550.41 million, a PE ratio of -2.17 and a beta of 1.31.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 9th. The transportation company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $673.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $673.40 million. Forward Air had a positive return on equity of 19.03% and a negative net margin of 10.10%. Research analysts forecast that Forward Air Corporation will post -2.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Forward Air

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FWRD. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Forward Air in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,485,000. Cibc World Market Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Forward Air in the second quarter valued at approximately $14,485,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in shares of Forward Air in the second quarter valued at approximately $8,293,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Forward Air in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,987,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Forward Air in the first quarter valued at approximately $3,535,000. 97.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Forward Air

Forward Air Corporation is a transportation and logistics company that specializes in expedited freight and time-sensitive shipments. Its services include less-than-truckload transportation, truckload services, intermodal drayage, freight forwarding and other logistics solutions. The company’s ground transportation network connects major North American markets and includes services supporting air cargo shipments. Following its acquisition of Omni Logistics, Forward Air also offers international freight forwarding, customs brokerage and related supply-chain services.