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

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

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on BLBD. DA Davidson upped their price target on Blue Bird from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Bank of America raised their target price on Blue Bird from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $72.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $43.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blue Bird currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.17.

Blue Bird Stock Performance

Shares of BLBD stock opened at $53.51 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The business’s 50 day moving average is $49.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.32. The company has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.25 and a beta of 1.61. Blue Bird has a 12-month low of $17.59 and a 12-month high of $59.40.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $333.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $330.00 million. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 116.23% and a net margin of 7.65%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Blue Bird will post 3.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Phil Horlock sold 16,080 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total transaction of $761,227.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 331,971 shares in the company, valued at $15,715,507.14. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, President Britton Smith sold 2,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total transaction of $120,384.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 83,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,990,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Phil Horlock sold 16,080 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total value of $761,227.20. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 331,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,715,507.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 61,240 shares of company stock worth $2,960,546. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blue Bird

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the first quarter worth about $83,817,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in Blue Bird by 81.7% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 509,422 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,432,000 after purchasing an additional 229,004 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its position in Blue Bird by 279.5% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 415,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,587,000 after purchasing an additional 305,868 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in Blue Bird by 91.5% in the first quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 329,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,636,000 after purchasing an additional 157,468 shares during the period. 93.59% of the stock is 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.