Forward Air Corp. (FWRD)
NASDAQIndustrialsIntegrated Freight & LogisticsSnapshot 2026-10-29
$17.87+1.88%
Close 2026-10-29 · 1-day change
NASDAQIndustrialsIntegrated Freight & LogisticsSnapshot 2026-10-29
Research Workspace
Put FWRD beside peers and holdings, graph the same metric, and keep your notes with the evidence.
Daily closes. Earnings/event dots are placed inline.
Industries move in repeating boom-and-bust cycles. This shows where this stock’s industry sits in that cycle, stage by stage (recovery → expansion → supercycle → steady → deceleration → contraction), from its fundamentals (orders, revenue, capital spending), not the stock’s price.
A booming industry is a tailwind for the names in it; a contracting one is a headwind. Companies in the same industry tend to rise and fall together with the cycle, the way a tide lifts and lowers every boat in the harbor at once, so a large part of a stock’s swing can come from where its industry sits rather than from the company itself. It’s context for reading the company’s results, not a buy/sell call. Full explanation →
Industrials is in expansion. Describes the industry's cycle state, not a call on this stock.
The stage band shows the industry’s cycle over the chart’s timeline (each color a stage); a ▼ marks a quarter its growth inflected down — amber is an unconfirmed watch, red is confirmed the next quarter. Use “Overlay cycle on chart” to tint the price chart by stage. The industry’s fundamentals, not a signal on this stock.
Primary pillar under pressure — Cash from operations grows to at least $45.74M next quarter: Comparison needs review.
View ThesisRevenue is contracting — down about 0% over the past year.
View GrowthManagement screens weak on capital allocation, earnings delivery, margins.
View ManagementExpectations look reasonable — what the market is pricing in sits in line with or below what analysts forecast.
View ValuationThis stock is highly volatile — it swings about 2% on a typical day and fell roughly 73% in its worst 12-month stretch.
View RiskFWRD’s case rests on recovery in freight earnings, despite weak recent financial performance and sector headwinds. Revenue fell 5.1% year over year in Q1 FY2026, then grew 8.8% in Q2 FY2026. Q2 FY2026 non-GAAP earnings beat consensus, though FWRD remains unprofitable over the past year. FWRD trades at 0.2× sales versus a 1.5× peer median; expectations look modest versus our view. The next-quarter miss probability is 32%, and the thesis flags a cash-flow comparison needing review. The 1.5× peer multiple gap leaves the valuation dependent on improving fundamentals. Peer multiples imply a price about 70% above where it trades; the thesis is on watch. This read is provisional.
Trailing returns as of 2026-10-29. FWRD is total return (includes dividends); the S&P 500 benchmark is price return (the index excludes dividends).
Based on 5 analysts currently covering FWRD (as of Oct 2026).
Analyst ratings and price targets are third-party Wall Street estimates, not QuarterlyIQ’s view. Not investment advice.
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| Compare | Company | Living FV | P/E | Revenue % | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FWRD Selected company | Graph | Compare | Trend | Review | |
| Peer Add a competitor | Graph | Compare | Trend | Review | |
| Holding Compare a holding | Graph | Compare | Trend | Review |
Selected metric trend
Quarterly · checked companies · value or % of revenue
A consensus fair price across 3 valuation methods, at three horizons. As of 2026-10-29. Estimates are diagnostics, not price targets. Short-horizon estimates are close to coin-flips, so confidence is a method-agreement read, not a prediction.
Today's peer multiple on trailing earnings, with no growth credited. This is the headline read.
Adds projected growth, so it leans optimistic by design. Read it as upside context, not a base case.
A price-focused, side-by-side fair-value read versus Air Freight & Logistics — fair value, gap to price, and forward P/E.
Compare the value case
Put FWRD next to peers and holdings, compare Living FV and multiples, then graph the driver behind the difference.
Threatens: Retain significant revenue from largest customer amid transition
Record revenue may not sustain amid customer transition.
Not investment advice. Scores describe historical and current data; they are not forecasts of future returns. Consult a licensed advisor before making investment decisions.
End-of-day figures as of 2026-10-29. EPS is implied from price ÷ P/E. Not investment advice.
A long-thesis check that carries the widest uncertainty of the three horizons.
Bottom 25% on quality vs scored peers
Direction of the business behind the multiple. Bands are backend reads; trailing-12-month basis.
TTM earnings are negative. P/E-based methods drop out and the estimate leans on sales- and cash-flow-based methods. A data condition, not a forward call.
Advances: Retain significant revenue from largest customer amid transition
Analysts backing contract supports revenue retention from largest customer.
Highlights Forward Air's strategic positioning with Amazon.