Forward Air Acquires Assets of Atlantic Trucking Co.
Forward Air Corp. moved to expand its intermodal trucking business in the southeastern United States with the purchase of substantially all of the assets of Atlantic Trucking Co. and its affiliates in Charleston, S.C.
Terms were not disclosed and, while the deal remains subject to various conditions, it is expected to close by the end of the second quarter in 2017, company officials said.
Atlantic provides intermodal, drayage and related services throughout the Southeast. The company generated revenue of $62.3 million and posted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization of $5.1 million in 2016. It has terminals in Atlanta, Charlotte, N.C., Houston, Jacksonville, Fla., Memphis and Nashville, Tenn., Norfolk, Va., and Savannah, Ga.
Matthew Jewell, president of logistics services at Forward Air, said Atlantic’s business will become part of the company’s intermodal subsidiary, Central States Trucking Co. Since acquiring Central States Trucking in 2014, Forward Air has purchased four other companies and generated $103.7 million in revenue from intermodal operations last year, according to the company’s 2016 annual report.
“Atlantic has the management talent, fleet size, customer base, geographic footprint and quality of operations that we have been looking for to serve as our Southeast beachhead and to complement our Midwest legacy locations,” Jewell said in a April 10 statement.
Atlantic’s management and employees will remain in place, Jewell said.
“This is an exciting opportunity for our team to become a part of one of the fastest growing and financially secure companies in the industry,” Atlantic President Kevin O’Donnell said. “We are very much looking forward to contributing to their continued success.”
Forward Air ranks No. 35 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of largest for-hire carriers in the United States and Canada and Central States Trucking ranks No. 12 on TT’s list of top intermodal/drayage carriers.
