StockNews.com Lowers Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) to Hold

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Blue Bird from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $43.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Blue Bird from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $72.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.17.

Blue Bird Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of BLBD stock opened at $53.51 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.40. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $49.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a PE ratio of 21.66, a PEG ratio of 0.25 and a beta of 1.61. Blue Bird has a 52-week low of $17.59 and a 52-week high of $59.40.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $333.37 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $330.00 million. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 116.23% and a net margin of 7.65%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.42 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Blue Bird will post 3.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.08, for a total transaction of $235,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 88,926 shares in the company, valued at $4,186,636.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Blue Bird news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 5,000 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.08, for a total value of $235,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 88,926 shares in the company, valued at $4,186,636.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Britton Smith sold 2,508 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.81, for a total transaction of $124,923.48. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 80,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,015,532.77. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 61,240 shares of company stock worth $2,960,546 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Blue Bird

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Victory Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Blue Bird during the 4th quarter worth about $89,000. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in Blue Bird by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 47,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,283,000 after buying an additional 2,200 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Blue Bird by 18.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 207,594 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,597,000 after buying an additional 32,334 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Blue Bird during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $646,000. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 303.3% in the 4th quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 38,787 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 29,170 shares during the last quarter. 93.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blue Bird Company Profile

Blue Bird Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, engineers, manufactures, and sells school buses in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Bus and Parts. It offers Type C, Type D, and specialty buses; and alternative power options through its propane powered, gasoline powered, compressed natural gas powered, and electric powered school buses, as well as diesel engines.