Forward Air Co. (NASDAQ:FWRD) Shares Purchased by BlackRock Inc.

BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in shares of Forward Air Co. (NASDAQ:FWRD – Get Rating) by 2.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,167,575 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 113,938 shares during the quarter. BlackRock Inc. owned approximately 15.67% of Forward Air worth $376,165,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC raised its position in Forward Air by 8.2% in the third quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 39,021 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,520,000 after purchasing an additional 2,950 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Forward Air by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 41,506 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,747,000 after purchasing an additional 774 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC boosted its position in shares of Forward Air by 18.9% during the third quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 62,481 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $5,640,000 after buying an additional 9,930 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Forward Air by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 251,956 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $22,742,000 after acquiring an additional 4,342 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Group LLC boosted its stake in Forward Air by 3.4% during the third quarter. Renaissance Group LLC now owns 15,448 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,394,000 after buying an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. 99.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Forward Air Price Performance

Shares of Forward Air stock opened at $107.13 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.00 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $103.32. Forward Air Co. has a twelve month low of $84.04 and a twelve month high of $117.57.

Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD – Get Rating) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 9th. The transportation company reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.30). Forward Air had a return on equity of 29.20% and a net margin of 9.79%. The company had revenue of $481.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $501.18 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.40 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Forward Air Co. will post 6.77 EPS for the current year.

Forward Air Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 1st. Forward Air’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on FWRD shares. StockNews.com lowered Forward Air from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 15th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Forward Air from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Forward Air in a research note on Wednesday, January 4th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Forward Air in a report on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Forward Air news, Director Laurie Anne Tucker acquired 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $101.97 per share, with a total value of $407,880.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 10,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,042,235.37. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Chris C. Ruble sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.85, for a total value of $217,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 23,336 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,540,123.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Laurie Anne Tucker acquired 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 15th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $101.97 per share, with a total value of $407,880.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 10,221 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,042,235.37. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Forward Air Company Profile

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Forward Air Corp. engages in the provision of less-than-truckload (LTL), truckload, intermodal and pool distribution services. It operates through the following segments: Expedited LTL and Intermodal. The Expedited LTL segment provides expedited regional, inter-regional and national LTL, final mile and truckload services.