FWRD vs LSTR vs RXO Stock Comparison

Forward Air, Landstar System and Rxo Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
FWRD Forward Air Corp
$15.08 +2.7% 1M -23.3% 1Y
Market cap
$491.11M
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$2.52B
Div. yield
–
Logistics Industrials
1 win
LSTR Landstar System Inc
$165.17 +0.9% 1M +26.9% 1Y
Market cap
$5.73B
P/E
43.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$4.98B
Div. yield
–
Logistics Industrials
7 wins
RXO RXO, Inc.
$28.67 +44.9% 1M +63.7% 1Y
Market cap
$4.94B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$6.09B
Div. yield
–
Logistics Industrials
2 wins

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

Landstar System leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Landstar System 7, Rxo 2, Forward Air 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionFWRDLSTRRXOLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $491.11M $5.73B $4.94B LSTR
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -1.7x 43.5x -47.0x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 26.9x 220.5x LSTR
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -0.1% +4.1% +9.5% RXO
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -11.4% 2.6% -1.7% LSTR
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -9.8% 15.1% -3.3% LSTR
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -115.3x -1.3x 16.0x FWRD
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -23.3% +26.9% +63.7% RXO
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -30.5%/yr -0.7%/yr — LSTR
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 92.5% 35.1% 75.8% LSTR
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 20/100 44/100 24/100 LSTR

Percentile Scorecard

FWRDLSTRRXO

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisFWRDLSTRRXO
Valuation 33 #91 of 136 19 #111 of 136 13 #119 of 136
Growth 20 #98 of 122 10 #110 of 122 18 #100 of 122
Profitability 17 #96 of 116 54 #54 of 116 19 #94 of 116
Financial Health 11 #128 of 144 87 #20 of 144 44 #81 of 144
Shareholder Returns – 52 #40 of 82 –
Overall 20 44 24
  • FWRD ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • LSTR ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • RXO ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodFWRDLSTRRXOSPY
1 month +2.7%+0.9%+44.9% -0.8%
3 months +2.4%-13.8%+18.9% +3.5%
6 months -34.0%-8.3%+47.6% +7.0%
Year to date -39.7%+14.9%+126.8% +12.2%
1 year -23.3%+26.9%+63.7% +13.0%
3 years -78.6%+1.6%+66.0% +86.3%
3 years, per year -40.2%+0.5%+18.4% +23.1%
5 years -83.7%-3.6%— +68.6%
5 years, per year -30.5%-0.7%— +11.0%
10 years -62.7%+133.5%— +258.0%
10 years, per year -9.4%+8.8%— +13.6%

Risk

MeasureFWRDLSTRRXOSPY
Volatility, 1Y 92.5%35.1%75.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 113.8%37.1%82.8% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.520.711.83 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.250.770.84 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -93.3%-41.2%-67.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -50.1%-26.7%-2.2% -1.8%
52-week high $30.23$225.37$29.32 $779.14
52-week low $8.31$121.51$10.48 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleFWRDLSTRRXO
P/E now vs peer median -1.7xmedian 16.1x 42.6xmedian 16.1x -46.3xmedian 16.1x
P/S now vs peer median 0.2xmedian 1.0x 1.1xmedian 1.0x 0.8xmedian 1.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median -153.0xmedian 8.7x 24.4xmedian 8.7x 173.6xmedian 8.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 10.6xmedian 11.5x 31.9xmedian 11.5x -62.2xmedian 11.5x
P/B now vs peer median -4.1xmedian 1.2x 6.7xmedian 1.2x 3.1xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median 0.03median 0.81 -1.66median 0.81 0.46median 0.81

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsFWRDLSTRRXO
Revenue $2.52B $4.98B $6.09B
Gross profit – – $1.11B
Operating income -$168.73M $175.34M -$76.00M
Net income -$330.71M $131.70M -$105.00M
Free cash flow $48.22M $175.65M -$76.00M
EPS (diluted) $-8.81 $3.88 $-0.62
Cash & equivalents $139.45M $294.35M $15.00M
Total debt $1.69B $230.93M $495.00M
Shares (diluted) 32.48M 33.94M 169.65M
Enterprise value -$35.71M $4.08B $4.86B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricFWRDLSTRRXO
P/E -1.7x 42.6x -46.3x
P/FCF 10.6x 31.9x -62.2x
P/Operating cash flow 7.2x 29.5x -278.1x
P/S 0.2x 1.1x 0.8x
P/B -4.1x 6.7x 3.1x
P/Tangible book -0.5x 6.7x 4.4x
EV/EBITDA -153.0x 24.4x 173.6x
EV/EBIT -12.2x 30.4x -68.5x
EV/Revenue 0.8x 1.1x 0.9x
EV/FCF 42.8x 30.3x -68.5x
EV/Operating cash flow 29.1x 28.1x -306.4x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.03 -1.66 0.46

Growth

14 metrics
MetricFWRDLSTRRXO
Revenue growth (1Y) -0.1% 4.1% 9.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 18.1% -7.5% 12.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – -1.4%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – 1.7%
Operating income growth (1Y) -237.4% -19.0% -2.7%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -42.5% -26.8% -62.7%
Net income growth (1Y) -72.8% -21.6% 65.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -61.1% -27.0% -120.7%
EPS growth (1Y) -54.9% -19.4% 66.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -52.0% -25.6% -101.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 67.4% -8.3% -342.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -34.7% -32.0% -27.8%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 503.2% -6.8% -68.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -39.4% -32.6% -36.6%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricFWRDLSTRRXO
Gross margin – – 18.2%
EBITDA margin -0.5% 4.4% 0.5%
Operating margin -6.7% 3.5% -1.2%
Pretax margin -13.9% 3.5% -2.0%
Net margin -11.4% 2.6% -1.7%
FCF margin 1.9% 3.5% -1.2%
Operating cash flow margin 2.8% 3.8% -0.3%
Return on equity – 16.1% -7.0%
Return on assets -13.6% 7.9% -3.1%
Return on invested capital -9.8% 15.1% -3.3%
Return on capital employed -8.0% 18.5% -3.6%
Asset turnover 1.0x 3.0x 1.8x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -0.2x 1.4x 0.2x
Stock comp / revenue 0.4% 0.2% 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricFWRDLSTRRXO
Debt / assets 70.2% 4.1% 14.3%
Debt / equity -13.8x 0.1x 0.3x
Net debt / EBITDA -115.3x -1.3x 16.0x
Debt / FCF 35.1x 0.4x -6.5x
Liabilities / assets 105.1% 52.0% 56.5%
Equity / assets -5.1% 48.0% 43.5%
Interest coverage -1.0x 98.1x –
Current ratio 1.3x 1.8x 1.3x
Quick ratio 1.2x 1.7x 1.2x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.5x 0.0x
Altman Z-score 0.60 9.66 3.08

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricFWRDLSTRRXO
Dividend yield – 2.2% –
Net buyback yield – 1.8% –
Shareholder yield 0.0% 4.0% –
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusFWRDLSTRRXO
Forward P/E – 26.9xFY2026 220.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-0.86FY2026 $6.15FY2026 $0.13FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +85.8%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after – +27.8% +384.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.49BFY2026 $5.45BFY2026 $7.20BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -0.3%FY2026 +15.1%FY2026 +25.5%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +9.5% +17.6% -0.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersFWRDLSTRRXO
Held by institutions 90.3% 100.0% 100.0%
Institutions holding 189 543 302
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.5% -2.8% -1.3%
Institutions buying 118 296 164
Institutions selling 45 153 82
Buyers to sellers 2.62 1.93 2.00

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

FWRDLSTRRXO
FWRD 1.00 0.28 0.22
LSTR 0.28 1.00 0.61
RXO 0.22 0.61 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, FWRD, LSTR and RXO?

Landstar System (LSTR) is the largest by market capitalisation: Forward Air (FWRD) $491.11M, Landstar System (LSTR) $5.73B, Rxo (RXO) $4.94B.

Which company is growing faster?

Rxo (RXO) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Forward Air (FWRD) -0.1%, Landstar System (LSTR) +4.1%, Rxo (RXO) +9.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Landstar System (LSTR) has the highest net margin (Forward Air (FWRD) -11.4%, Landstar System (LSTR) 2.6%, Rxo (RXO) -1.7%). On return on invested capital, Landstar System (LSTR) leads (Forward Air (FWRD) -9.8%, Landstar System (LSTR) 15.1%, Rxo (RXO) -3.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Rxo (RXO) returned the most: Forward Air (FWRD) -23.3%, Landstar System (LSTR) +26.9%, Rxo (RXO) +63.7%. Over five years, Landstar System (LSTR) compounded fastest (Forward Air (FWRD) -30.5%/yr, Landstar System (LSTR) -0.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Landstar System (LSTR) has been the steadiest (Forward Air (FWRD) 92.5%, Landstar System (LSTR) 35.1%, Rxo (RXO) 75.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, FWRD, LSTR and RXO?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Landstar System (LSTR) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.