Forward Air | 8-K: FY2026 Q2 Revenue Beats Estimate at USD 673.04 M

Revenue: As of FY2026 Q2, the actual value is USD 673.04 M, beating the estimate of USD 633.13 M.

EPS: As of FY2026 Q2, the actual value is USD -6.38, missing the estimate of USD -0.325.

EBIT: As of FY2026 Q2, the actual value is USD -201.31 M.

Forward Air Corporation reported its financial results for the three months ended June 30, 2026, achieving its highest quarterly operating revenue in company history. The company’s liquidity remained robust at $401 million, consisting of $139 million in cash and $261 million of availability under its credit facility, an improvement of $33 million compared to the second quarter of 2025.

Consolidated Financial Performance

• Operating Revenues: $673,036 thousand, an 8.8% increase from $618,844 thousand in the prior year period.
• Operating (Loss) Income: - $201,312 thousand, compared to $19,522 thousand in the prior year period.
• Operating Margin: -29.9%, compared to 3.2% in the prior year period.
• Consolidated EBITDA: $92,985 thousand, up 17.6% from $79,081 thousand in the prior year period.
• Adjusted Operating Income (Non-GAAP): $42,694 thousand, an increase of 118.7% from $19,522 thousand in the prior year period.
• Impairment of Goodwill: A non-cash goodwill impairment charge of $244,006 thousand was included, related to the Omni Logistics segment.

Cash Flow and Liquidity

• Net Cash (Used in) Provided by Operating Activities: - $4,883 thousand, which is a 63.1% improvement compared to - $13,217 thousand in the prior year period.
• Free Cash Flow (Non-GAAP): - $6,971 thousand, a 59.4% improvement compared to - $17,157 thousand in the prior year period.
• Operating Cash Flow (2Q26): $46 million.
• Unlevered Free Cash Flow (2Q26): $46 million.
• Change in cash (2Q26): - $2 million, with debt service at $57 million.
• Operating Cash Flow (First Half 2026): $104 million, covering $80 million of debt service and growing cash by $33 million year-to-date.
• Cash Balance: $139 million as of June 30, 2026, supplemented by $9 million net proceeds from the sale of a business.
• Liquidity: Remained robust at $401 million in 2Q26.
• Net Debt: $1,658 million, resulting in a Net Leverage Ratio of 5.2x with Consolidated LTM EBITDA of $319 million.
• Debt Maturities: No long-term debt maturities until December 2030.

Segment Performance

Expedited Freight Segment

• Operating Revenues: $319,062 thousand, a 23.8% increase from $257,696 thousand.
  • Network revenue: $225,971 thousand, up 16.6%.
  • Truckload revenue: $69,237 thousand, up 62.4%.
  • Other revenue: $23,854 thousand, up 12.4%.
• Operating Expenses: $284,169 thousand, up 19.3% from $238,201 thousand.
• Operating Income: $34,893 thousand, a 79.0% increase from $19,495 thousand, with an operating margin of 10.9%.
• Operating Ratio: Improved by 3.4% to 89.1%.
• Reported EBITDA: Increased by 45.3% to $43 million, with a Reported EBITDA Margin of 13.6%.
• Operational Metrics:
  • Total pounds: 665,073 thousand, up 6.7%.
  • Pounds per day: 10,392 thousand, up 6.7%.
  • Total shipments: 749 thousand, up 1.4%.
  • Shipments per day: 11.7 thousand, up 1.7%.
  • Weight per shipment: 888, up 5.3%.
  • Revenue per hundredweight: $33.98, up 9.3%.
  • Revenue per shipment: $301.75, up 15.3%.
  • LTL Revenue per Shipment ex-fuel: $215, up 2.9%.
  • Claims ratio: Approximately 0.1%.

Omni Logistics Segment

• Operating Revenues: $338,547 thousand, a 3.1% increase from $328,316 thousand.
  • Ground revenue: $132,854 thousand, a -14.5% decrease.
  • Contract Logistics revenue: $112,332 thousand, up 15.2%.
  • Air and Ocean revenue: $93,361 thousand, up 23.8%.
• Operating Expenses: $568,557 thousand, up 77.0% from $321,130 thousand, including the $244,006 thousand goodwill impairment.
• Operating (Loss) Income: - $230,010 thousand, compared to $7,186 thousand in the prior year period.
• Adjusted Operating Income: $14 million, compared to $7 million in 2Q25.
• Operating Ratio: Improved by 1.9% to 95.9%.
• Reported EBITDA: $38 million, a 27.9% increase from $30 million in 2Q25, with a Reported EBITDA Margin of 11.2%.

Intermodal Segment

• Operating Revenues: $59,724 thousand, a 1.0% increase from $59,146 thousand.
• Operating Expenses: $53,623 thousand, a -2.0% decrease from $54,731 thousand.
• Operating Income: $6,101 thousand, a 38.2% increase from $4,415 thousand, with an operating margin of 10.2%.
• Operating Ratio: Improved by 2.8% to 89.8%.
• Reported EBITDA: Increased by 12.0% to $10 million, with a Reported EBITDA Margin of 16.7%.
• Operational Metrics:
  • Drayage shipments: 61,909, a -0.6% decrease.
  • Drayage revenue per shipment: $942, up 9.3%.

Outlook/Guidance

Management expressed satisfaction with the solid quarter, noting momentum from transformational efforts and an improving freight market. The company plans to continue executing its strategy to deliver sustainable, long-term value for stakeholders as market conditions improve. The Intermodal segment is anticipated to benefit from a strong pipeline and recently implemented strategic rate increases.