Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ: FWRD) (“Forward” or the
“Company”) today announced that Shawn Stewart has been named Chief
Executive Officer and a Director of the Board, effective April 28,
2024. Michael Hance, who served as Interim CEO, will continue to
serve as Chief Legal Officer and Secretary.
Mr. Stewart is a seasoned executive with nearly three decades of
experience in logistics and transportation. During his tenure at
CEVA Logistics, a global end-to-end logistics company, Mr. Stewart
held numerous leadership positions and most recently served as
President and Managing Director, North America. In this role, Mr.
Stewart spearheaded the growth and development of the region,
overseeing a vast network of operations across the United States,
Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean Islands. He was responsible for a
diverse team of more than 15,000 employees and more than $5 billion
in top-line turnover.
Under Mr. Stewart’s leadership, CEVA Logistics experienced
substantial business growth and operational improvements, including
a nearly 25% increase in Net Promoter Score (NPS) and a
double-digit reduction in direct operating expenses. Mr. Stewart’s
commitment to operational excellence and his customer-centric
approach consistently delivered results, including improvement of
on-time service metrics.
Prior to CEVA, Mr. Stewart served with distinction in the US
Navy, where he received the Navy Achievement Medal for his
exemplary service aboard the USS Inchon and USS Theodore
Roosevelt.
“The Board and our advisors conducted a thorough search and are
confident Shawn is the right leader to drive Forward’s future
success,” said George Mayes, Independent Chairman. “He knows this
industry inside and out and has demonstrated a track record of
successfully delivering growth and operational excellence. We look
forward to working with Shawn to inspire and lead our teams into
the next phase of growth for the newly combined company. On behalf
of the Board, I want to thank Michael for his leadership during
this period of transition.”
“Together, Forward and Omni have created an industry leader with
a clear dedication to delivering world-class service to customers –
a quality I share,” said Mr. Stewart. “I have been impressed by the
resilience both teams have demonstrated in a challenging market and
during a protracted transition period. I’m proud to take the baton
from Michael and excited for the opportunity to work with these
talented teams to achieve outstanding results.”
Additionally, Forward will release its first quarter 2024
earnings after the market closes on Wednesday, May 8, 2024 and hold
a conference call to discuss those results on the following day,
Thursday, May 9, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. ET. The Company’s conference
call will be available online on the Investor Relations portion of
the Company’s website at ir.forwardaircorp.com, or by dialing (877)
876-9173, Access Code: FWRDQ124. Since we use our Investor
Relations website as a primary mechanism to communicate with our
investors, investors are urged to monitor the Investor Relations
portion of the Company’s website to easily find or navigate to
current and pertinent information about us. A replay of the
conference call will be available on the Investor Relations portion
of the Company’s website at ir.forwardaircorp.com beginning shortly
after completion of the live call.
About Forward Air
Forward Air is a leading asset-light provider of transportation
services across the United States, Canada and Mexico. We provide
expedited less-than-truckload services, including local pick-up and
delivery, shipment consolidation/deconsolidation, warehousing, and
customs brokerage by utilizing a comprehensive national network of
terminals. In addition, we offer truckload brokerage services,
including dedicated fleet services, and intermodal, first- and
last-mile, high-value drayage services, both to and from seaports
and railheads, dedicated contract and Container Freight Station
warehouse and handling services. Forward also operates a full
portfolio of multimodal solutions, both domestically and
internationally, via Omni Logistics. Omni Logistics is a global
provider of air, ocean and ground services for mission-critical
freight. We are more than a transportation company. Forward is a
single resource for your shipping needs. For more information,
visit our website at www.forwardaircorp.com.
Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended.
Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as:
“anticipate”, “expect”, “intend”, “plan”, “goal”, “target”,
“project”, “believe”, “may”, “should”, “will”, “aim”, “would”,
“seek”, “estimate”, “strategy”, “future”, “likely” and similar
references to future periods. Forward-looking statements included
in this press release relate to expectations regarding, among other
things, the appointment of new senior leadership and management
plans for future operations and performance.
Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor
assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on
our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the
future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections,
anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future
conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the
future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and
changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of
which are outside of our control. Our actual results and financial
condition may differ materially from those indicated in the
forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any
of these forward-looking statements. The following is a list of
factors, among others, that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking
statements: economic factors such as recessions, inflation, higher
interest rates and downturns in customer business cycles, the
Company's ability to achieve the expected strategic, financial and
other benefits of the acquisition of Omni Logistics, including the
realization of expected synergies and the achievement of
deleveraging targets within the expected timeframes or at all, the
risk that the businesses will not be integrated successfully or
that integration may be more difficult, time-consuming or costly
than expected, the risk that operating costs, customer loss,
management and employee retention and business disruption
(including, without limitation, difficulties in maintaining
relationships with employees, customers, clients or suppliers) as a
result of the acquisition of Omni Logistics may be greater than
expected, continued weakening of the freight environment, future
debt and financing levels, our ability to deleverage, including,
without limitation, through capital allocation or divestitures of
non-core businesses, our ability to secure terminal facilities in
desirable locations at reasonable rates, more limited liquidity
than expected which limits our ability to make key investments, the
creditworthiness of our customers and their ability to pay for
services rendered, our inability to maintain our historical growth
rate because of a decreased volume of freight or decreased average
revenue per pound of freight moving through our network, the
availability and compensation of qualified Leased Capacity
Providers and freight handlers as well as contracted, third-party
carriers needed to serve our customers’ transportation needs, our
inability to manage our information systems and inability of our
information systems to handle an increased volume of freight moving
through our network, the occurrence of cybersecurity risks and
events, market acceptance of our service offerings, claims for
property damage, personal injuries or workers’ compensation,
enforcement of and changes in governmental regulations,
environmental, tax, insurance and accounting matters, the handling
of hazardous materials, changes in fuel prices, loss of a major
customer, increasing competition, and pricing pressure, our
dependence on our senior management team and the potential effects
of changes in employee status, seasonal trends, the occurrence of
certain weather events, restrictions in our charter and bylaws and
the risks described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2023, and as may be identified in our subsequent
Current Reports on Form 8-K.
We caution readers that any forward-looking statement made by us
in this press release is based only on information currently
available to us and they should not place undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements, which reflect management's opinion as
of the date on which it is made. We undertake no obligation to
publicly update any forward- looking statement, whether written or
oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of
new information, future developments or otherwise unless required
by law.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240423541114/en/
Elizabeth Volpe / Libby Lloyd Brunswick Group (212) 333 - 3810
ForwardAirCorporation@BrunswickGroup.com
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