Park-Ohio (PKOH) Competitors

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) and Park-Ohio (NASDAQ:PKOH) are both small-cap air freight & logistics companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their media sentiment, profitability, risk, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation and dividends.

Does the media prefer FWRD or PKOH?

In the previous week, Park-Ohio had 1 more articles in the media than Forward Air. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for Park-Ohio and 3 mentions for Forward Air. Forward Air's average media sentiment score of 0.64 beat Park-Ohio's score of 0.58 indicating that Forward Air is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Forward Air	0 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Park-Ohio	1 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts prefer FWRD or PKOH?

Forward Air currently has a consensus price target of $34.00, indicating a potential upside of 24.68%. Given Forward Air's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Forward Air is more favorable than Park-Ohio.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Forward Air	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.60
Park-Ohio	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0.00

Which has higher earnings and valuation, FWRD or PKOH?

Park-Ohio has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Forward Air. Forward Air is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Park-Ohio, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Forward Air	$2.47B	0.34	-$816.97M	-$29.05	-0.94
Park-Ohio	$1.66B	0.15	$31.80M	$2.29	7.52

Is FWRD or PKOH more profitable?

Park-Ohio has a net margin of 1.86% compared to Forward Air's net margin of -31.66%. Park-Ohio's return on equity of 13.76% beat Forward Air's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Forward Air	-31.66%	-242.42%	-25.08%
Park-Ohio	1.86%	13.76%	3.31%

Which has more volatility and risk, FWRD or PKOH?

Forward Air has a beta of 1.41, meaning that its stock price is 41% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Park-Ohio has a beta of 1.25, meaning that its stock price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Do insiders & institutionals believe in FWRD or PKOH?

97.0% of Forward Air shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 51.4% of Park-Ohio shares are held by institutional investors. 17.2% of Forward Air shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 31.5% of Park-Ohio shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Forward Air and Park-Ohio tied by winning 8 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.