Forward Air Co. (NASDAQ:FWRD – Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, July 27th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 18th will be paid a dividend of 0.24 per share by the transportation company on Thursday, September 8th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 17th.
Forward Air has a dividend payout ratio of 14.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Forward Air to earn $6.84 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.96 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 14.0%.
Forward Air Stock Up 4.2 %
Shares of NASDAQ:FWRD opened at $102.15 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.74 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $92.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.39. Forward Air has a 1 year low of $80.56 and a 1 year high of $125.71.
Forward Air (NASDAQ:FWRD – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 27th. The transportation company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.45. The company had revenue of $515.22 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $515.72 million. Forward Air had a net margin of 7.77% and a return on equity of 24.69%. Forward Air’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.11 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Forward Air will post 6.73 EPS for the current year.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FWRD. Susquehanna reduced their price target on Forward Air from $143.00 to $133.00 in a research report on Friday, April 29th. StockNews.com raised Forward Air from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 2nd. Susquehanna Bancshares cut their target price on Forward Air from $143.00 to $133.00 in a research report on Friday, April 29th. Benchmark assumed coverage on Forward Air in a research report on Tuesday, July 19th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Raymond James reissued a “maintains” rating on shares of Forward Air in a research report on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.83.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FWRD. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Forward Air by 12.3% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,836 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $570,000 after acquiring an additional 640 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Forward Air by 3.9% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,053 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $495,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 7.7% in the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 24,107 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,357,000 after acquiring an additional 1,730 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Forward Air by 55.8% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 13,970 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,366,000 after buying an additional 5,003 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Forward Air by 5.7% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 68,402 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $6,688,000 after purchasing an additional 3,715 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.66% of the company’s stock.
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 final mile, truckload, shipment consolidation and deconsolidation, warehousing, customs brokerage, and other handling.