Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) Stock Price Down 3%

Forward Air Co. (NASDAQ:FWRD) was down 3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $24.35 and last traded at $24.46. Approximately 21,310 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 98% from the average daily volume of 927,479 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.22.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on FWRD shares. StockNews.com cut Forward Air from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Forward Air from $50.00 to $40.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Forward Air in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wolfe Research cut Forward Air from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $50.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Forward Air from $80.00 to $55.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.14.

Forward Air Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $614.95 million, a PE ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.98. The business’s fifty day moving average is $32.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The transportation company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $338.43 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $406.96 million. Forward Air had a net margin of 10.58% and a return on equity of 15.30%. Forward Air’s quarterly revenue was down 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Forward Air Co. will post 0.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Forward Air

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FWRD. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Forward Air by 12.3% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,836 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $570,000 after buying an additional 640 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Forward Air by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,053 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $495,000 after buying an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its position in shares of Forward Air by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 24,107 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,357,000 after acquiring an additional 1,730 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Forward Air by 55.8% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 13,970 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,366,000 after acquiring an additional 5,003 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in shares of Forward Air by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 68,402 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $6,688,000 after acquiring an additional 3,715 shares during the period. 97.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.