Forward Air Corporation Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Acquisitions and Goodwill

Acquisitions and Goodwill

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2017

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

Acquisition of Atlantic, Triumph and Ace

As part of the Company's strategy to expand its Intermodal operations, in May 2017, we acquired certain assets of Atlantic Trucking Company, Inc., Heavy Duty Equipment Leasing, LLC, Atlantic Logistics, LLC and Transportation Holdings, Inc. (together referred to as “Atlantic” in this note) for $22,500 and a potential earnout of $1,000. The acquisition was funded by a combination of cash on hand and funds from our revolving credit facility. Atlantic was a privately held provider of intermodal, drayage and related services headquartered in Charleston, South Carolina. It also has terminal operations in Atlanta, Charlotte, Houston, Jacksonville, Memphis, Nashville, Norfolk and Savannah. These locations allow Intermodal to significantly expand its footprint in the southeastern region. During the year ended December 31, 2016, Atlantic generated approximately $62,300 in revenue.

In August 2016, we also acquired certain assets of Triumph Transport, Inc. and Triumph Repair Service, Inc. (together referred to as “Triumph”) for $10,100 and an earnout of $1,250 paid in September 2017. The assets, liabilities, and operating results of Triumph have been included in the Company's consolidated financial statements from the date of acquisition and have been assigned to the Intermodal reportable segment. In January 2016, the Company also acquired certain assets of Ace Cargo, LLC ("Ace") for $1,700.

The assets, liabilities, and operating results of Atlantic, Triumph and Ace have been included in the Company's consolidated financial statements from the respective dates of acquisition and have been assigned to the Intermodal reportable segment. During the third quarter of 2017, Atlantic contributed $14,745 in revenue and $1,119 in operating income.

Allocations of Purchase Prices

The following table presents the allocations of the Atlantic, Triumph and Ace purchase prices to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their estimated fair values and resulting residual goodwill (in thousands):



	Atlantic		Triumph & Ace
	May 7, 2017		2016
Tangible assets:
Property and equipment	$	1,821	$	1,294
Total tangible assets	1,821		1,294
Intangible assets:
Non-compete agreements	1,150		139
Customer relationships	13,400		5,335
Goodwill	6,860		6,282
Total intangible assets	21,410		11,756
Total assets acquired	23,231		13,050

Liabilities assumed:
Other liabilities	590		1,250
Debt and capital lease obligations	141		—
Total liabilities assumed	731		1,250
Net assets acquired	$	22,500	$	11,800

The above purchase price allocation for Atlantic is preliminary, as the Company is still in the process of finalizing the valuation of the acquired assets and liabilities assumed. The above estimated fair values of assets acquired and liabilities assumed for Atlantic are based on the information that was available as of the acquisition date through the date of this filing. The acquired definite-lived intangible assets have the following useful lives:



	Useful Lives
	Atlantic	Triumph & Ace
Customer relationships	15 years	15 years
Non-compete agreements	5 years	5 years

The fair value of the non-compete agreements and customer relationships assets were estimated using an income approach (level 3). Under this method, an intangible asset's fair value is equal to the present value of the incremental after-tax cash flows (excess earnings) attributable solely to the intangible asset over its remaining useful life. To estimate fair value, the Company used cash flows discounted at rates considered appropriate given the inherent risks associated with each type of asset. The Company believes that the level and timing of cash flows appropriately reflect market participant assumptions. Cash flows were assumed to extend through the remaining economic useful life of each class of intangible asset.

Escrow Funds

In 2015, the Company acquired CLP Towne Inc. (“Towne”) resulting in Towne becoming an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. At the time of acquisition $16,500 of the total purchase price was placed into an escrow account, to settle any shortfall in Towne’s net working capital and to be available for a period of time to settle certain possible claims against Towne’s common stockholders for indemnification. During the second quarter of 2017, we received $2,525 from this escrow for reimbursement of various claims. Approximately $1,621 was credited to operating leases and other operating expenses to offset related costs incurred in previous periods. The remaining $904 was used to establish reserves for various pending claims.

Goodwill

The Company conducted its annual impairment assessments and tests of goodwill for each reporting unit as of June 30, 2017 and no impairment charges were required. The first step of the goodwill impairment test is the Company's assessment of qualitative factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than the reporting unit's carrying amount, including goodwill. When performing the qualitative assessment, the Company considers the impact of factors including, but not limited to, macroeconomic and industry conditions, overall financial performance of each reporting unit, litigation and new legislation. If based on the qualitative assessments, the Company believes it more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than the reporting unit's carrying amount, or periodically as deemed appropriate by management, the Company will prepare an estimation of the respective reporting unit's fair value utilizing a quantitative approach. If a quantitative fair value estimation is required, the Company estimates the fair value of the applicable reporting units, using a combination of discounted projected cash flows and market valuations for comparable companies as of the valuation date. The Company's inputs into the fair value estimates for goodwill are classified within level 3 of the fair value hierarchy as defined in the FASB Accounting Standards Codification and the Hierarchy of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“the FASB Codification”). If this estimation of fair value indicates that impairment potentially exists, the Company will then measure the amount of the impairment, if any. Goodwill impairment exists when the estimated implied fair value of goodwill is less than its carrying value. Changes in strategy or market conditions could significantly impact these fair value estimates and require adjustments to recorded asset balances.

We have five reporting units - Expedited LTL, TLX Forward Air, Intermodal, Pool Distribution and Total Quality, Inc. ("TQI"). The TLX Forward Air and the TQI reporting units are assigned to the Truckload Premium Services reporting segment. Currently, there is no goodwill assigned to the TLX Forward Air reporting unit.

In 2016, due to the financial performance of the Total Quality, Inc. ("TQI") reporting unit falling notably short of previous projections, declining revenue from significant customers and strategic initiatives not having the required impact on financial results, the Company reduced TQI's projected cash flows and as a result the estimate of TQI's fair value no longer exceeded the respective carrying value. As a result of these assessments, the Company concluded that an impairment loss was probable and could be reasonably estimated for the TQI reporting unit, which is included in the TLS reportable segment. Consequently, the Company recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $25,686 for the TQI reporting unit during the three months ended June 30, 2016.

The following is a summary of the changes to goodwill for the nine months ended September 30, 2017. Approximately $112,391 of goodwill is deductible for tax purposes.



	Expedited LTL				TLS					Pool Distribution					Intermodal				Total
			Accumulated				Accumulated					Accumulated					Accumulated
	Goodwill		Impairment		Goodwill		Impairment			Goodwill		Impairment			Goodwill		Impairment		Net
Beginning balance, December 31, 2016	$	97,593	$	—	$	45,164	$	(25,686	)	$	12,359	$	(6,953	)	$	62,198	$	—	$	184,675
Atlantic Acquisition	—		—		—		—			—		—			6,860		—		6,860
Ending balance, September 30, 2017	$	97,593	$	—	$	45,164	$	(25,686	)	$	12,359	$	(6,953	)	$	69,058	$	—	$	191,535

Intangibles and Other Long-Lived Assets

Additionally, the Company reviews its long-lived assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable. Impairment is recognized on assets classified as held and used when the sum of undiscounted estimated cash flows expected to result from the use of the asset is less than the carrying value. If such measurement indicates a possible impairment, the estimated fair value of the asset is compared to its net book value to measure the impairment charge, if any. In conjunction with the June 30, 2016 TQI goodwill impairment assessment, the Company determined there were indicators that TQI's customer relationship and non-compete intangible assets were impaired as the undiscounted cash flows associated with the applicable assets no longer exceeded the related assets' net book values. The Company then estimated the current market values of the customer relationship and non-compete assets using an income approach (level 3). As a result of these estimates the Company recorded an impairment charge of $16,501 related to TQI customer relationships during the three months ended June 30, 2016.

In addition, during the three months ended June 30, 2016, the Company also discontinued use of an owned maintenance facility and began efforts to sell the property. In conjunction with these actions, the Company incurred a $255 impairment charge that was estimated using current offers received to sell the property less estimated cost to sell the facility.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the aggregate amount of goodwill and a description of intangible assets, which may include (a) for amortizable intangible assets (also referred to as finite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, the amount of any significant residual value, and the weighted-average amortization period, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization (also referred to as indefinite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, and (c) the amount of research and development assets acquired and written off in the period, including the line item in the income statement in which the amounts written off are aggregated, if not readily apparent from the income statement. Also discloses (a) for amortizable intangibles assets in total and by major class, the gross carrying amount and accumulated amortization, the total amortization expense for the period, and the estimated aggregate amortization expense for each of the five succeeding fiscal years, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization the carrying amount in total and by major class, and (c) for goodwill, in total and for each reportable segment, the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the period (including the aggregate amount of goodwill acquired, the aggregate amount of impairment losses recognized, and the amount of goodwill included in the gain (loss) on disposal of a reporting unit). If any part of goodwill has not been allocated to a reportable segment, discloses the unallocated amount and the reasons for not allocating. For each impairment loss recognized related to an intangible asset (excluding goodwill), discloses: (a) a description of the impaired intangible asset and the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method for determining fair value, (c) the caption in the income statement or the statement of activities in which the impairment loss is aggregated, and (d) the segment in which the impaired intangible asset is reported. For each goodwill impairment loss recognized, discloses: (a) a description of the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method of determining the fair value of the associated reporting unit, and (c) if a recognized impairment loss is an estimate not finalized and the reasons why the estimate is not final. May also disclose the nature and amount of any significant adjustments made to a previous estimate of an impairment loss.

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