FWRD vs R vs CHRW Stock Comparison

Forward Air, Ryder System and C. H. Robinson Worldwide Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
FWRD Forward Air Corp
$15.14 +3.1% 1M -23.5% 1Y
Market cap
$537.72M
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$2.52B
Div. yield
–
Logistics Industrials
1 win
R Ryder System Inc
$279.65 +18.7% 1M +66.2% 1Y
Market cap
$10.54B
P/E
20.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$13.08B
Div. yield
0.01%
Logistics Industrials
7 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Ryder System leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Ryder System 7, C. H. Robinson Worldwide 3, Forward Air 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionFWRDRCHRWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $537.72M $10.54B $15.26B CHRW
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -1.9x 20.3x 24.1x R
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 19.4x 23.5x R
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -0.1% +3.2% -0.1% R
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -11.4% 4.0% 3.7% R
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -9.8% -70.6% 21.4% CHRW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -115.3x -0.9x 1.6x FWRD
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.01% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -23.5% +66.2% +11.3% R
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -31.1%/yr +26.4%/yr +7.9%/yr R
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 92.3% 32.1% 46.9% R
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 21/100 40/100 41/100 CHRW

Percentile Scorecard

FWRDRCHRW

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

AxisFWRDRCHRW
Valuation 33 #91 of 136 37 #86 of 136 22 #106 of 136
Growth 20 #97 of 121 62 #47 of 121 29 #86 of 121
Profitability 18 #95 of 115 27 #84 of 115 52 #56 of 115
Financial Health 11 #127 of 143 4 #137 of 143 44 #81 of 143
Shareholder Returns – 69 #26 of 82 57 #36 of 82
Overall 21 40 41
  • FWRD ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • R ranked among 150 companies in Transportation
  • CHRW ranked among 150 companies in Transportation

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodFWRDRCHRWSPY
1 month +3.1%+18.7%-2.4% -0.2%
3 months +2.4%+7.5%-15.2% +3.9%
6 months -32.4%+12.9%-23.6% +8.2%
Year to date -39.4%+46.1%-10.7% +12.9%
1 year -23.5%+66.2%+11.3% +12.3%
3 years -78.5%+202.7%+76.7% +87.4%
3 years, per year -40.1%+44.7%+20.9% +23.3%
5 years -84.5%+222.8%+46.3% +67.9%
5 years, per year -31.1%+26.4%+7.9% +10.9%
10 years -62.9%+304.2%+112.9% +261.1%
10 years, per year -9.4%+15.0%+7.9% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureFWRDRCHRWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 92.3%32.1%46.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 113.8%29.0%50.6% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.521.020.57 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.252.060.24 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -93.3%-28.8%-43.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -49.9%-0.9%-31.4% -1.2%
52-week high $30.23$282.13$209.42 $779.14
52-week low $8.31$162.50$128.07 $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.

MultipleFWRDRCHRW
P/E now vs peer median -1.7xmedian 16.3x 20.6xmedian 16.3x 26.9xmedian 16.3x
P/S now vs peer median 0.2xmedian 1.0x 0.8xmedian 1.0x 1.0xmedian 1.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median -153.2xmedian 8.7x -2.2xmedian 8.7x 19.7xmedian 8.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 10.6xmedian 11.4x 11.2xmedian 11.4x 25.1xmedian 11.4x
P/B now vs peer median -4.2xmedian 1.2x 3.6xmedian 1.2x 10.3xmedian 1.2x
PEG now vs peer median 0.03median 0.82 2.47median 0.82 4.59median 0.82

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 monthsFWRDRCHRW
Revenue $2.52B $13.08B $17.00B
Gross profit – $2.56B $2.76B
Operating income -$168.73M -$9.81B $833.62M
Net income -$330.71M $520.00M $633.33M
Free cash flow $48.22M $954.00M $668.76M
EPS (diluted) $-8.81 $13.41 $5.29
Cash & equivalents $139.45M $198.00M $154.59M
Total debt $1.69B $30.21B $1.69B
Shares (diluted) 32.48M 38.79M 119.75M
Enterprise value $10.90M $9.74B $14.64B

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
MetricFWRDRCHRW
P/E -1.7x 20.6x 26.9x
P/FCF 10.6x 11.2x 25.1x
P/Operating cash flow 7.2x 3.9x 24.5x
P/S 0.2x 0.8x 1.0x
P/B -4.2x 3.6x 10.3x
P/Tangible book -0.5x 4.1x 10.6x
EV/EBITDA -153.2x -2.2x 19.7x
EV/EBIT -12.2x -1.8x 22.0x
EV/Revenue 0.8x 1.4x 1.1x
EV/FCF 42.8x 18.5x 27.4x
EV/Operating cash flow 29.1x 6.5x 26.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.03 2.47 4.59

Growth

14 metrics
MetricFWRDRCHRW
Revenue growth (1Y) -0.1% 3.2% -0.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 18.1% 3.4% -5.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – -0.4% -0.9%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 3.6% -2.8%
Operating income growth (1Y) -237.4% -4.2% 10.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -42.5% -3.7% 3.8%
Net income growth (1Y) -72.8% 3.6% 18.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -61.1% 2.1% 5.8%
EPS growth (1Y) -54.9% 11.2% 19.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -52.0% 8.3% 5.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 67.4% 13.8% -3.4%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -34.7% 4.9% -28.5%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 503.2% 1,184% -3.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -39.4% 47.1% -28.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricFWRDRCHRW
Gross margin – 19.6% 16.2%
EBITDA margin -0.5% -61.9% 5.5%
Operating margin -6.7% -75.0% 4.9%
Pretax margin -13.9% 5.4% 4.6%
Net margin -11.4% 4.0% 3.7%
FCF margin 1.9% 7.3% 3.9%
Operating cash flow margin 2.8% 20.9% 4.0%
Return on equity – 17.8% 38.0%
Return on assets -13.6% 3.2% 11.4%
Return on invested capital -9.8% -70.6% 21.4%
Return on capital employed -8.0% -80.1% 25.4%
Asset turnover 1.0x 0.8x 3.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -0.2x 5.3x 1.1x
Stock comp / revenue 0.4% – 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricFWRDRCHRW
Debt / assets 70.2% 44.6% 28.8%
Debt / equity -13.8x 2.4x 1.0x
Net debt / EBITDA -115.3x -0.9x 1.6x
Debt / FCF 35.1x 7.6x 2.5x
Liabilities / assets 105.1% 81.6% 72.1%
Equity / assets -5.1% 18.4% 27.9%
Interest coverage -1.0x -25.2x –
Current ratio 1.3x 0.7x 1.6x
Quick ratio 1.2x 0.6x 1.5x
Cash ratio 0.3x 0.1x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 0.60 -0.58 7.54

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricFWRDRCHRW
Dividend yield – 1.3% 1.8%
Net buyback yield – 5.2% 2.8%
Shareholder yield 0.0% 6.5% 4.6%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 28.8% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 15.7% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 5.6% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 6.3% –

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.

ConsensusFWRDRCHRW
Forward P/E – 19.4xFY2026 23.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-0.86FY2026 $14.45FY2026 $6.12FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +11.8%FY2026 +20.2%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – +30.6% +19.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.49BFY2026 $14.12BFY2026 $18.98BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -0.3%FY2026 +11.5%FY2026 +16.9%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +9.5% +2.3% +1.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersFWRDRCHRW
Held by institutions 90.3% 90.8% 100.0%
Institutions holding 189 579 891
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.5% -0.6% -1.7%
Institutions buying 118 309 445
Institutions selling 45 177 318
Buyers to sellers 2.62 1.75 1.40

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.

FWRDRCHRW
FWRD 1.00 0.37 0.24
R 0.37 1.00 0.35
CHRW 0.24 0.35 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, FWRD, R and CHRW?

C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) is the largest by market capitalisation: Forward Air (FWRD) $537.72M, Ryder System (R) $10.54B, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) $15.26B.

Which stock is cheaper, FWRD, R and CHRW?

Ryder System (R) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Forward Air (FWRD) -1.9x, Ryder System (R) 20.3x, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) 24.1x). On next year's consensus earnings, Ryder System (R) is cheapest (Ryder System (R) 19.4x, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) 23.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Ryder System (R) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Forward Air (FWRD) -0.1%, Ryder System (R) +3.2%, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) -0.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Ryder System (R) has the highest net margin (Forward Air (FWRD) -11.4%, Ryder System (R) 4.0%, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) 3.7%). On return on invested capital, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) leads (Forward Air (FWRD) -9.8%, Ryder System (R) -70.6%, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) 21.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Ryder System (R) returned the most: Forward Air (FWRD) -23.5%, Ryder System (R) +66.2%, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) +11.3%. Over five years, Ryder System (R) compounded fastest (Forward Air (FWRD) -31.1%/yr, Ryder System (R) +26.4%/yr, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) +7.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Forward Air (FWRD) 0.00%, Ryder System (R) 0.01%, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) 0.00%. Forward Air (FWRD) and C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Ryder System (R) has been the steadiest (Forward Air (FWRD) 92.3%, Ryder System (R) 32.1%, C. H. Robinson Worldwide (CHRW) 46.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, FWRD, R and CHRW?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Ryder System (R) 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.