vs
Side-by-side financial comparison of FORWARD AIR CORP (FWRD) and MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC (MSM). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($965.7M vs $631.2M, roughly 1.5× FORWARD AIR CORP). MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC runs the higher net margin — 5.4% vs -4.5%, a 9.9% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (4.0% vs -0.3%). Over the past eight quarters, FORWARD AIR CORP's revenue compounded faster (7.9% CAGR vs -3.4%).
Forward Air Corp is a leading North American asset-light logistics and transportation provider. It offers core services including expedited less-than-truckload freight delivery, final-mile logistics, intermodal transport, warehousing, and supply chain solutions, serving key sectors such as e-commerce, retail, manufacturing, and automotive across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc (MSC), through its subsidiaries, primarily MSC Industrial Supply Co., is one of the largest industrial equipment distributors in the United States, distributing more than 1.5 million metalworking and other industrial products.
FWRD vs MSM — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q1 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $631.2M | $965.7M |
| Net Profit | $-28.3M | $51.8M |
| Gross Margin | — | 40.7% |
| Operating Margin | -0.5% | 7.9% |
| Net Margin | -4.5% | 5.4% |
| Revenue YoY | -0.3% | 4.0% |
| Net Profit YoY | 22.2% | 11.1% |
| EPS (diluted) | $-0.90 | $0.93 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | $631.2M | $965.7M | ||
| Q3 25 | $631.8M | $978.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | $618.8M | $971.1M | ||
| Q1 25 | $613.3M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $632.8M | $928.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $655.9M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $643.7M | $979.4M | ||
| Q1 24 | $541.8M | $935.3M |
| Q4 25 | $-28.3M | $51.8M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-16.3M | $56.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $-12.6M | $56.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $-50.6M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $-36.4M | $46.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-73.4M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $-645.4M | $71.7M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-61.7M | $61.8M |
| Q4 25 | — | 40.7% | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 40.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 41.0% | ||
| Q1 25 | — | — | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 40.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 40.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 41.5% |
| Q4 25 | -0.5% | 7.9% | ||
| Q3 25 | 2.4% | 8.6% | ||
| Q2 25 | 3.2% | 8.5% | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.8% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 12.0% | 7.8% | ||
| Q3 24 | 3.5% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | -170.2% | 10.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | -12.1% | 9.7% |
| Q4 25 | -4.5% | 5.4% | ||
| Q3 25 | -2.6% | 5.8% | ||
| Q2 25 | -2.0% | 5.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | -8.3% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | -5.8% | 5.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | -11.2% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | -100.3% | 7.3% | ||
| Q1 24 | -11.4% | 6.6% |
| Q4 25 | $-0.90 | $0.93 | ||
| Q3 25 | $-0.52 | $1.02 | ||
| Q2 25 | $-0.41 | $1.02 | ||
| Q1 25 | $-1.68 | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $-1.69 | $0.83 | ||
| Q3 24 | $-2.66 | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $-23.47 | $1.27 | ||
| Q1 24 | $-2.81 | $1.10 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $106.0M | $40.3M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $1.7B | $214.1M |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $113.3M | $1.4B |
| Total Assets | $2.7B | $2.5B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 14.89× | 0.16× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $106.0M | $40.3M | ||
| Q3 25 | $140.4M | $56.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | $95.1M | $71.7M | ||
| Q1 25 | $116.3M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $104.9M | $57.3M | ||
| Q3 24 | $136.6M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $84.9M | $25.9M | ||
| Q1 24 | $152.0M | $22.2M |
| Q4 25 | $1.7B | $214.1M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.7B | $168.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $285.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | — | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $289.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $299.8M | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.7B | $294.5M |
| Q4 25 | $113.3M | $1.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $139.8M | $1.4B | ||
| Q2 25 | $151.8M | $1.4B | ||
| Q1 25 | $154.6M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $201.7M | $1.4B | ||
| Q3 24 | $226.1M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $283.8M | $1.4B | ||
| Q1 24 | $926.1M | $1.4B |
| Q4 25 | $2.7B | $2.5B | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.8B | $2.5B | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.8B | $2.5B | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.8B | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.8B | $2.5B | ||
| Q3 24 | $3.1B | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $3.1B | $2.5B | ||
| Q1 24 | $4.0B | $2.5B |
| Q4 25 | 14.89× | 0.16× | ||
| Q3 25 | 12.05× | 0.12× | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 0.21× | ||
| Q1 25 | — | — | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 0.21× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 0.21× | ||
| Q1 24 | 1.81× | 0.21× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | — | $29.4M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | — | $7.4M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | — | 0.8% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 1.3% | 2.3% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | — | 0.57× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | — | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | — | $29.4M | ||
| Q3 25 | $52.7M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $151.6M | ||
| Q1 25 | $27.6M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $-23.2M | $101.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $51.2M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $-45.2M | $143.5M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-51.7M | $78.7M |
| Q4 25 | — | $7.4M | ||
| Q3 25 | $48.6M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $100.7M | ||
| Q1 25 | $15.7M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $-30.5M | $81.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $40.7M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $-59.6M | $114.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-56.7M | $53.4M |
| Q4 25 | — | 0.8% | ||
| Q3 25 | 7.7% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 10.4% | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.6% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | -4.8% | 8.8% | ||
| Q3 24 | 6.2% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | -9.3% | 11.6% | ||
| Q1 24 | -10.5% | 5.7% |
| Q4 25 | 1.3% | 2.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.7% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.8% | 5.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.9% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.1% | 2.2% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.6% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 2.2% | 3.0% | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.9% | 2.7% |
| Q4 25 | — | 0.57× | ||
| Q3 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 2.67× | ||
| Q1 25 | — | — | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 2.18× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 2.00× | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 1.27× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
FWRD
| Omni Logistics Segment | $359.8M | 57% |
| Network | $183.9M | 29% |
| Intermodal Segment | $50.2M | 8% |
| Truckload | $41.6M | 7% |
MSM
Segment breakdown not available.
