Analysts Set Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ:FWRD) Price Target at $17.50

Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ:FWRD) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the five ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $17.50.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $17.00 target price on Forward Air in a report on Friday, May 8th. Susquehanna cut their target price on Forward Air from $42.00 to $18.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Forward Air in a report on Tuesday, April 21st.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Forward Air

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,353,608 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $60,347,000 after purchasing an additional 307,906 shares in the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Forward Air by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,475,055 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $37,820,000 after acquiring an additional 116,012 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Forward Air by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 949,784 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $23,745,000 after acquiring an additional 19,854 shares in the last quarter. Melqart Asset Management UK Ltd lifted its stake in Forward Air by 122.3% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its stake in Forward Air by 3.8% during 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 in the last quarter. 97.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Forward Air Price Performance

Shares of FWRD opened at $10.58 on Friday. Forward Air has a 12-month low of $7.86 and a 12-month high of $32.47. The business’s fifty day moving average is $15.87 and its 200 day moving average is $21.81. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.98. The stock has a market cap of $334.54 million, a P/E ratio of -3.61 and a beta of 1.59.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The transportation company reported ($1.09) earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $582.05 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $620.23 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($1.68) earnings per share. Forward Air’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Forward Air will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Forward Air Company Profile

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.