Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Shares of Forward Air Co. (NASDAQ:FWRD) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $33.73, but opened at $31.81. Forward Air shares last traded at $31.39, with a volume of 271,132 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on FWRD. Jefferies Financial Group set a $47.00 price objective on shares of Forward Air and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Forward Air from $17.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Forward Air from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Forward Air in a research report on Monday, August 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $39.25.

Forward Air Trading Up 3.9 %

The business has a fifty day moving average of $35.42 and a 200-day moving average of $26.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $970.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.51 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.70, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The transportation company reported ($23.29) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($23.11). The business had revenue of $643.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $642.92 million. Forward Air had a negative net margin of 30.77% and a negative return on equity of 79.11%. The company’s revenue was up 92.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.91 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Forward Air Co. will post -1.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Forward Air in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Gladius Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Forward Air by 33.5% during the second quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,964 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 493 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Forward Air by 2,329.3% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,992 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,910 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Forward Air during the third quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Forward Air by 98.5% during the first quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,634 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 811 shares during the period. 97.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Forward Air Company Profile

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.