BNP Paribas Financial Markets Has $7.16 Million Stake in Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its stake in shares of Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) by 17.9% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 149,338 shares of the company’s stock after selling 32,514 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Blue Bird were worth $7,162,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Blue Bird by 268.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,841,745 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,330,000 after purchasing an additional 1,341,259 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 36.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,911,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,292,000 after buying an additional 505,727 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 81.7% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 509,422 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,432,000 after buying an additional 229,004 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Blue Bird during the 2nd quarter worth about $11,788,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Blue Bird by 414.2% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 256,933 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,836,000 after acquiring an additional 206,966 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BLBD shares. Roth Capital downgraded Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 price objective on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Craig Hallum raised their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Blue Bird from $66.00 to $63.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.64.

Insider Transactions at Blue Bird

In related news, President Britton Smith sold 2,508 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.81, for a total transaction of $124,923.48. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 80,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,015,532.77. This represents a 3.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Shares of BLBD stock opened at $42.43 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.62. Blue Bird Co. has a 12-month low of $19.30 and a 12-month high of $59.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $43.01 and a 200-day moving average of $48.41.

About Blue Bird

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.