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Side-by-side financial comparison of FORWARD AIR CORP (FWRD) and NATIONAL HEALTHCARE CORP (NHC). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

FORWARD AIR CORP is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($631.2M vs $386.5M, roughly 1.6× NATIONAL HEALTHCARE CORP). NATIONAL HEALTHCARE CORP runs the higher net margin — 6.4% vs -4.5%, a 10.9% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, NATIONAL HEALTHCARE CORP posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (4.6% vs -0.3%). Over the past eight quarters, NATIONAL HEALTHCARE CORP's revenue compounded faster (14.0% CAGR vs 7.9%).

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.

HCA Healthcare, Inc. is an American global for-profit operator of health care facilities that was founded in 1968. It is based in Nashville, Tennessee, and, as of May 2020, owned and operated 186 hospitals and approximately 2,400 sites of care, including surgery centers, freestanding emergency rooms, urgent care centers and physician clinics in 20 states and the United Kingdom. As of 2024, HCA Healthcare is ranked #61 on the Fortune 500 rankings of the largest United States corporations by to...

FWRD vs NHC — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
FWRD
FWRD
1.6× larger
FWRD
$631.2M
$386.5M
NHC
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
NHC
NHC
+4.9% gap
NHC
4.6%
-0.3%
FWRD
Higher net margin
NHC
NHC
10.9% more per $
NHC
6.4%
-4.5%
FWRD
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
NHC
NHC
Annualised
NHC
14.0%
7.9%
FWRD

Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025

Metric
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Revenue
$631.2M
$386.5M
Net Profit
$-28.3M
$24.8M
Gross Margin
Operating Margin
-0.5%
8.6%
Net Margin
-4.5%
6.4%
Revenue YoY
-0.3%
4.6%
Net Profit YoY
22.2%
308.6%
EPS (diluted)
$-0.90
$1.58

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.

Revenue
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
$631.2M
$386.5M
Q3 25
$631.8M
$382.7M
Q2 25
$618.8M
$374.9M
Q1 25
$613.3M
$373.7M
Q4 24
$632.8M
$369.4M
Q3 24
$655.9M
$340.2M
Q2 24
$643.7M
$300.7M
Q1 24
$541.8M
$297.2M
Net Profit
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
$-28.3M
$24.8M
Q3 25
$-16.3M
$39.2M
Q2 25
$-12.6M
$23.7M
Q1 25
$-50.6M
$32.2M
Q4 24
$-36.4M
$6.1M
Q3 24
$-73.4M
$42.8M
Q2 24
$-645.4M
$26.8M
Q1 24
$-61.7M
$26.2M
Operating Margin
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
-0.5%
8.6%
Q3 25
2.4%
7.9%
Q2 25
3.2%
9.1%
Q1 25
0.8%
8.2%
Q4 24
12.0%
7.8%
Q3 24
3.5%
6.7%
Q2 24
-170.2%
7.5%
Q1 24
-12.1%
5.3%
Net Margin
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
-4.5%
6.4%
Q3 25
-2.6%
10.3%
Q2 25
-2.0%
6.3%
Q1 25
-8.3%
8.6%
Q4 24
-5.8%
1.6%
Q3 24
-11.2%
12.6%
Q2 24
-100.3%
8.9%
Q1 24
-11.4%
8.8%
EPS (diluted)
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
$-0.90
$1.58
Q3 25
$-0.52
$2.50
Q2 25
$-0.41
$1.52
Q1 25
$-1.68
$2.07
Q4 24
$-1.69
$0.38
Q3 24
$-2.66
$2.73
Q2 24
$-23.47
$1.73
Q1 24
$-2.81
$1.69

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$106.0M
$92.8M
Total DebtLower is stronger
$1.7B
$40.0M
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$113.3M
$1.1B
Total Assets
$2.7B
$1.5B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
14.89×
0.04×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
$106.0M
$92.8M
Q3 25
$140.4M
$130.6M
Q2 25
$95.1M
$111.0M
Q1 25
$116.3M
$90.4M
Q4 24
$104.9M
$76.1M
Q3 24
$136.6M
$84.8M
Q2 24
$84.9M
$136.2M
Q1 24
$152.0M
$94.0M
Total Debt
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
$1.7B
$40.0M
Q3 25
$1.7B
$73.1M
Q2 25
$110.0M
Q1 25
$134.0M
Q4 24
$137.0M
Q3 24
$147.0M
Q2 24
Q1 24
$1.7B
Stockholders' Equity
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
$113.3M
$1.1B
Q3 25
$139.8M
$1.1B
Q2 25
$151.8M
$1.0B
Q1 25
$154.6M
$1.0B
Q4 24
$201.7M
$980.2M
Q3 24
$226.1M
$983.5M
Q2 24
$283.8M
$945.8M
Q1 24
$926.1M
$924.7M
Total Assets
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
$2.7B
$1.5B
Q3 25
$2.8B
$1.6B
Q2 25
$2.8B
$1.6B
Q1 25
$2.8B
$1.5B
Q4 24
$2.8B
$1.5B
Q3 24
$3.1B
$1.6B
Q2 24
$3.1B
$1.3B
Q1 24
$4.0B
$1.3B
Debt / Equity
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
14.89×
0.04×
Q3 25
12.05×
0.07×
Q2 25
0.11×
Q1 25
0.13×
Q4 24
0.14×
Q3 24
0.15×
Q2 24
Q1 24
1.81×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$16.8M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$6.4M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
1.7%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
1.3%
2.7%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
0.68×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$148.6M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
$16.8M
Q3 25
$52.7M
$66.2M
Q2 25
$62.8M
Q1 25
$27.6M
$39.3M
Q4 24
$-23.2M
$12.8M
Q3 24
$51.2M
$34.2M
Q2 24
$-45.2M
$50.7M
Q1 24
$-51.7M
$9.6M
Free Cash Flow
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
$6.4M
Q3 25
$48.6M
$56.5M
Q2 25
$52.6M
Q1 25
$15.7M
$33.1M
Q4 24
$-30.5M
$4.6M
Q3 24
$40.7M
$28.6M
Q2 24
$-59.6M
$42.8M
Q1 24
$-56.7M
$3.7M
FCF Margin
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
1.7%
Q3 25
7.7%
14.8%
Q2 25
14.0%
Q1 25
2.6%
8.9%
Q4 24
-4.8%
1.3%
Q3 24
6.2%
8.4%
Q2 24
-9.3%
14.2%
Q1 24
-10.5%
1.2%
Capex Intensity
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
1.3%
2.7%
Q3 25
0.7%
2.5%
Q2 25
0.8%
2.7%
Q1 25
1.9%
1.6%
Q4 24
1.1%
2.2%
Q3 24
1.6%
1.7%
Q2 24
2.2%
2.6%
Q1 24
0.9%
2.0%
Cash Conversion
FWRD
FWRD
NHC
NHC
Q4 25
0.68×
Q3 25
1.69×
Q2 25
2.65×
Q1 25
1.22×
Q4 24
2.10×
Q3 24
0.80×
Q2 24
1.89×
Q1 24
0.37×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

FWRD
FWRD

Omni Logistics Segment$359.8M57%
Network$183.9M29%
Intermodal Segment$50.2M8%
Truckload$41.6M7%

NHC
NHC

Inpatient Services Segment$333.7M86%
Homecare Services Segment$40.0M10%
Other$11.2M3%
National$1.6M0%

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