Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Forward Air's stock price increased after Susquehanna upgraded its price target from $40.00 to $43.00, with the stock opening at $30.75 after closing the previous day at $28.57.
• The company has received multiple upgrades, with research reports indicating a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $37.75.
• Forward Air reported a quarterly loss, with an EPS of ($0.41), missing estimates by ($0.24), and experiencing a 3.9% decline in revenue compared to the same quarter last year.

Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ:FWRD - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday after Susquehanna raised their price target on the stock from $40.00 to $43.00. The stock had previously closed at $28.57, but opened at $30.75. Susquehanna currently has a positive rating on the stock. Forward Air shares last traded at $29.05, with a volume of 61,838 shares.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on FWRD. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Forward Air from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Forward Air from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Forward Air currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $37.75.

Institutional Trading of Forward Air

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 812.5% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 803 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 715 shares during the last quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 81.3% in the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 1,940 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 870 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 26.9% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,499 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 530 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Forward Air in the 4th quarter worth about $72,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 34.1% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,105 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 790 shares during the last quarter. 97.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Forward Air Stock Performance

The business's fifty day moving average price is $26.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.91, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $916.62 million, a P/E ratio of -4.97 and a beta of 1.43.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD - Get Free Report) last posted 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 business had revenue of $618.84 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $627.98 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($23.29) earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Forward Air Corporation will post -0.72 earnings per share for the current year.

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.