Forward Air Corporation $FWRD Shares Bought by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ:FWRD) by 105.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 404,706 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 208,096 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Forward Air were worth $10,118,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Forward Air by 207.0% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,600 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 1,753 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in Forward Air by 541.5% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 3,015 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 2,545 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Forward Air during the second quarter worth $107,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Forward Air during the second quarter worth $175,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Forward Air during the second quarter worth $182,000. 97.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on FWRD shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Forward Air in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Susquehanna cut their price objective on Forward Air from $42.00 to $18.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $17.00 price objective on Forward Air in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Forward Air has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.50.

Forward Air Stock Up 11.0%

Forward Air stock opened at $11.50 on Tuesday. Forward Air Corporation has a twelve month low of $7.86 and a twelve month high of $32.47. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $363.63 million, a P/E ratio of -3.92 and a beta of 1.42.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The transportation company reported ($1.09) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.35) by ($0.74). The business had revenue of $582.05 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $620.23 million. Forward Air had a negative net margin of 3.71% and a negative return on equity of 41.21%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned ($1.68) EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Forward Air Corporation will post -1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.