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Side-by-side financial comparison of FORWARD AIR CORP (FWRD) and NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NWE). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

FORWARD AIR CORP is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($631.2M vs $497.6M, roughly 1.3× NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc.). NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. runs the higher net margin — 12.8% vs -4.5%, a 17.2% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (6.6% vs -0.3%). Over the past eight quarters, NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (24.7% 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.

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. is a utility company that serves South Dakota, Nebraska, and Montana that is based in Sioux Falls. As of 2019, the company serves approximately 718,000 customers. The company's corporate headquarters are located in Sioux Falls while the headquarters for the South Dakota operations are in Huron, South Dakota.

FWRD vs NWE — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
FWRD
FWRD
1.3× larger
FWRD
$631.2M
$497.6M
NWE
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
NWE
NWE
+6.9% gap
NWE
6.6%
-0.3%
FWRD
Higher net margin
NWE
NWE
17.2% more per $
NWE
12.8%
-4.5%
FWRD
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
NWE
NWE
Annualised
NWE
24.7%
7.9%
FWRD

Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q1 FY2026

Metric
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Revenue
$631.2M
$497.6M
Net Profit
$-28.3M
$63.5M
Gross Margin
Operating Margin
-0.5%
22.9%
Net Margin
-4.5%
12.8%
Revenue YoY
-0.3%
6.6%
Net Profit YoY
22.2%
EPS (diluted)
$-0.90

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
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
$497.6M
Q4 25
$631.2M
$414.3M
Q3 25
$631.8M
$387.0M
Q2 25
$618.8M
$342.7M
Q1 25
$613.3M
$466.6M
Q4 24
$632.8M
$373.5M
Q3 24
$655.9M
$345.2M
Q2 24
$643.7M
$319.9M
Net Profit
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
$63.5M
Q4 25
$-28.3M
$44.7M
Q3 25
$-16.3M
$38.2M
Q2 25
$-12.6M
$21.2M
Q1 25
$-50.6M
$76.9M
Q4 24
$-36.4M
$80.6M
Q3 24
$-73.4M
$46.8M
Q2 24
$-645.4M
$31.7M
Operating Margin
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
22.9%
Q4 25
-0.5%
14.5%
Q3 25
2.4%
20.7%
Q2 25
3.2%
17.7%
Q1 25
0.8%
26.7%
Q4 24
12.0%
24.6%
Q3 24
3.5%
19.7%
Q2 24
-170.2%
19.3%
Net Margin
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
12.8%
Q4 25
-4.5%
10.8%
Q3 25
-2.6%
9.9%
Q2 25
-2.0%
6.2%
Q1 25
-8.3%
16.5%
Q4 24
-5.8%
21.6%
Q3 24
-11.2%
13.6%
Q2 24
-100.3%
9.9%
EPS (diluted)
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$-0.90
$0.72
Q3 25
$-0.52
$0.62
Q2 25
$-0.41
$0.35
Q1 25
$-1.68
$1.25
Q4 24
$-1.69
$1.31
Q3 24
$-2.66
$0.76
Q2 24
$-23.47
$0.52

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

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

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

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$106.0M
$8.8M
Q3 25
$140.4M
$6.2M
Q2 25
$95.1M
$2.9M
Q1 25
$116.3M
$56.0M
Q4 24
$104.9M
$4.3M
Q3 24
$136.6M
$2.5M
Q2 24
$84.9M
$6.4M
Total Debt
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$1.7B
$3.3B
Q3 25
$1.7B
Q2 25
Q1 25
Q4 24
$3.0B
Q3 24
Q2 24
Stockholders' Equity
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$113.3M
$2.9B
Q3 25
$139.8M
$2.9B
Q2 25
$151.8M
$2.9B
Q1 25
$154.6M
$2.9B
Q4 24
$201.7M
$2.9B
Q3 24
$226.1M
$2.8B
Q2 24
$283.8M
$2.8B
Total Assets
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
$2.7B
$8.5B
Q3 25
$2.8B
$8.3B
Q2 25
$2.8B
$8.1B
Q1 25
$2.8B
$8.1B
Q4 24
$2.8B
$8.0B
Q3 24
$3.1B
$7.9B
Q2 24
$3.1B
$7.7B
Debt / Equity
FWRD
FWRD
NWE
NWE
Q1 26
Q4 25
14.89×
1.14×
Q3 25
12.05×
Q2 25
Q1 25
Q4 24
1.05×
Q3 24
Q2 24

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%

NWE
NWE

Electric$362.1M73%
Gas$135.5M27%

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