Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) Shares Down 4.6% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Forward Air Corporation shares fell by 4.6%, trading as low as $27.07 following a previous close of $29.25, reflecting a significant decline in volume by 42% compared to average trading levels.
• Analysts have a "Moderate Buy" rating on Forward Air, with price targets raised by firms like Susquehanna to $43.00 and Stifel Nicolaus to $33.00.
• For the latest quarter, Forward Air reported a loss of ($0.41) EPS, missing estimates, and a revenue decline of 3.9% year-over-year, marking a challenging period for the transportation company.

Shares of Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ:FWRD - Get Free Report) were down 4.6% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $27.07 and last traded at $27.90. Approximately 370,030 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 42% from the average daily volume of 637,936 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.25.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on FWRD shares. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Forward Air from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Forward Air from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Forward Air from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $37.75.

Forward Air Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $800.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.34 and a beta of 1.40. The stock's fifty day moving average is $29.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.91.

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

Institutional Trading of Forward Air

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of FWRD. Littlejohn & Co. LLC grew its position in Forward Air by 70.1% in the 1st quarter. Littlejohn & Co. LLC now owns 2,814,401 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $56,541,000 after purchasing an additional 1,159,747 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Forward Air by 1,179.7% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 321,092 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $6,451,000 after acquiring an additional 296,001 shares in the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Forward Air by 28.9% during the 1st quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,230,390 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $24,719,000 after purchasing an additional 275,500 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake 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 during the period. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Forward Air by 148.0% in the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 285,670 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $9,213,000 after acquiring an additional 170,503 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.03% of the company's stock.

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.