Contrasting Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) and Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL)

Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) and Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD) are both transportation companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation and dividends.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Old Dominion Freight Line and Forward Air”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Old Dominion Freight Line	$5.81 billion	5.16	$1.19 billion	$5.33	26.61
Forward Air	$2.47 billion	0.36	-$816.97 million	($29.05)	-1.00

Old Dominion Freight Line has higher revenue and earnings than Forward Air. Forward Air is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Old Dominion Freight Line, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Old Dominion Freight Line and Forward Air, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Old Dominion Freight Line	1	14	8	0	2.30
Forward Air	0	2	3	0	2.60

Old Dominion Freight Line presently has a consensus price target of $168.38, suggesting a potential upside of 18.70%. Forward Air has a consensus price target of $35.00, suggesting a potential upside of 19.90%. Given Forward Air’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Forward Air is more favorable than Old Dominion Freight Line.

Profitability

This table compares Old Dominion Freight Line and Forward Air’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Old Dominion Freight Line	19.42%	25.94%	19.95%
Forward Air	-31.66%	-242.42%	-25.08%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

77.8% of Old Dominion Freight Line shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.0% of Forward Air shares are owned by institutional investors. 10.0% of Old Dominion Freight Line shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 17.2% of Forward Air shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

Old Dominion Freight Line has a beta of 1.24, indicating that its share price is 24% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Forward Air has a beta of 1.43, indicating that its share price is 43% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Old Dominion Freight Line beats Forward Air on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. operates as a less-than-truckload motor carrier in the United States and North America. The company offers regional, inter-regional, and national less-than-truckload services, as well as expedited transportation. It also provides various value-added services, including container drayage, truckload brokerage, and supply chain consulting. As of December 31, 2023, it owned and operated 10,791 tractors, 31,233 linehaul trailers, and 15,181 pickup and delivery trailers; 46 fleet maintenance centers; and 257 service centers. Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. was founded in 1934 and is headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina.

About Forward Air

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. This segment offers expedited truckload brokerage, dedicated fleet, and high security and temperature-controlled logistics services. The Intermodal segment provides intermodal container drayage services; and contract and container freight station warehouse and handling services. It serves freight forwarders, third-party logistics companies, integrated air cargo carriers and passenger, passenger and cargo airlines, steamship lines, and retailers. Forward Air Corporation was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Greeneville, Tennessee.