Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its position in Forward Air Co. (NASDAQ:FWRD – Free Report) by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 13,600 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.05% of Forward Air worth $1,443,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Forward Air during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Forward Air during the first quarter valued at $45,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Forward Air by 39.5% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 653 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in Forward Air by 137.8% in the 1st quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 761 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Forward Air by 467.8% in the first quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 1,147 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 945 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.03% of the company’s stock.
Insider Transactions at Forward Air
In other Forward Air news, insider Kyle R. Mitchin acquired 1,093 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 25th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $68.63 per share, with a total value of $75,012.59. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 18,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,296,832.48. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Kyle R. Mitchin bought 1,093 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $68.63 per share, with a total value of $75,012.59. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 18,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,296,832.48. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Chris C. Ruble bought 1,433 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $69.77 per share, for a total transaction of $99,980.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 28,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,972,816.52. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders purchased 23,302 shares of company stock valued at $1,471,544. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.
Forward Air Trading Up 2.4 %
Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 3rd. The transportation company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.28 by ($0.37). Forward Air had a net margin of 8.32% and a return on equity of 22.82%. The business had revenue of $402.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $444.15 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Forward Air Co. will post 4.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Forward Air Announces Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 17th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 16th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.38%. Forward Air’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.96%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
FWRD has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Forward Air in a research note on Monday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Forward Air from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $110.00 to $85.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 29th. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of Forward Air from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $130.00 to $80.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 15th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Forward Air in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Forward Air from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $127.00 to $103.00 in a research note on Friday, August 11th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Forward Air presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.14.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on FWRD
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 final mile, truckload, shipment consolidation and deconsolidation, warehousing, customs brokerage, and other handling.
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