Quantbot Technologies LP Acquires 16,659 Shares of Forward Air Corporation $FWRD

Key Points

• Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in Forward Air by 43.7%, now holding 54,773 shares valued at approximately $1.1 million.
• Forward Air reported a quarterly loss of ($0.41) earnings per share, falling short of analysts' expectations and showing a 3.9% revenue decline year-over-year.
• Multiple research firms have recently upgraded their price targets for Forward Air, with Susquehanna raising it from $40 to $43, reflecting a generally positive outlook on the company.

Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ:FWRD - Free Report) by 43.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 54,773 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 16,659 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP owned 0.18% of Forward Air worth $1,100,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Forward Air by 188.2% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 28,349 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $570,000 after purchasing an additional 18,511 shares during the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. boosted its position in shares of Forward Air by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 10,980 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 1,684 shares during the last quarter. Littlejohn & Co. LLC boosted its position in shares of Forward Air by 70.1% in the 1st quarter. Littlejohn & Co. LLC now owns 2,814,401 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $56,541,000 after purchasing an additional 1,159,747 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in shares of Forward Air by 27.1% in the 1st quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 63,343 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,273,000 after purchasing an additional 13,523 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Forward Air during the first quarter worth about $1,843,000. 97.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Forward Air Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:FWRD traded down $0.38 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $30.03. The company had a trading volume of 305,292 shares, compared to its average volume of 651,235. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.91. The business's 50 day moving average price is $28.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.41. The stock has a market cap of $924.62 million, a PE ratio of -5.01 and a beta of 1.43. Forward Air Corporation has a 1-year low of $9.78 and a 1-year high of $40.92.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The transportation company reported ($0.41) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.17) by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $618.84 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $627.98 million. Forward Air had a negative net margin of 6.86% and a negative return on equity of 40.36%. Forward Air's revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($23.29) EPS. Research analysts forecast that Forward Air Corporation will post -0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Forward Air from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Forward Air from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 21st. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their target price on Forward Air from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $37.75.

About Forward Air

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.