Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) Shares Gap Down - Should You Sell?

Forward Air Co. (NASDAQ:FWRD - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down before the market opened 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FWRD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Forward Air from $17.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Forward Air from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Benchmark reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Forward Air in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $47.00 price target on shares of Forward Air and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $39.25.

Forward Air Price Performance

The stock's fifty day moving average price is $35.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.69 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.70.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The transportation company reported ($23.29) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.18) by ($23.11). Forward Air had a negative return on equity of 79.11% and a negative net margin of 30.77%. The company had revenue of $643.67 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $642.92 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. Forward Air's revenue was up 92.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Forward Air Co. will post -1.01 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Forward Air

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Forward Air in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Gladius Capital Management LP increased its stake in Forward Air by 33.5% in the second quarter. Gladius Capital Management LP now owns 1,964 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Forward Air by 2,329.3% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,992 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,910 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Forward Air in the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 98.5% in the first quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,634 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 811 shares in the last quarter. 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.