Royce & Associates LP Has $4.49 Million Stake in Forward Air Corporation $FWRD

Key Points

• Royce & Associates increased its stake in Forward Air by 169.5% in Q3 to 175,189 shares, now owning about $4.49 million or roughly 0.56% of the company.
• Institutional ownership is very high at 97.03%, with major holders like Vanguard owning 2.35 million shares (~$60.35 million) and several other funds raising their positions recently.
• Forward Air reported Q results with EPS of ($0.28) (missed by $0.01) and revenue of $631.23M (slightly above estimates), while showing negative ROE and net margin; analysts are mixed with a consensus “Hold” and a $37 price target.

Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in shares of Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ:FWRD - Free Report) by 169.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 175,189 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 110,175 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned approximately 0.56% of Forward Air worth $4,492,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Forward Air by 15.1% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,353,608 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $60,347,000 after acquiring an additional 307,906 shares during the period. Ridgemont Partners Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Forward Air by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ridgemont Partners Management LLC now owns 1,937,405 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $49,675,000 after acquiring an additional 13,926 shares during the period. Private Management Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 8.7% during the 2nd quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 1,046,226 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $25,674,000 after purchasing an additional 83,600 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 47.3% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 786,883 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $19,310,000 after purchasing an additional 252,509 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Forward Air by 24.7% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 611,316 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $15,002,000 after purchasing an additional 121,190 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.03% of the company's stock.

Forward Air Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ FWRD opened at $24.61 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $27.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.58, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.22. Forward Air Corporation has a 52-week low of $9.78 and a 52-week high of $32.47. The stock has a market cap of $769.06 million, a PE ratio of -6.99 and a beta of 1.33.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The transportation company reported ($0.28) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.27) by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $631.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $629.60 million. Forward Air had a negative return on equity of 42.67% and a negative net margin of 4.32%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($1.23) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Forward Air Corporation will post -0.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on FWRD shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Forward Air in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Susquehanna restated a "positive" rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Forward Air in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Forward Air in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Zacks Research cut shares of Forward Air from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Forward Air from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $37.00.

Forward Air 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.

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