Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Friday morning.

BLBD has been the subject of several other research reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $72.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America increased their target price on Blue Bird from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Roth Capital downgraded Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. BTIG Research initiated coverage on Blue Bird in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Roth Mkm lowered shares of Blue Bird from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $48.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.14.

Blue Bird Stock Performance

NASDAQ BLBD opened at $41.72 on Friday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $1.35 billion, a PE ratio of 13.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 1.62. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $46.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.46. Blue Bird has a twelve month low of $17.79 and a twelve month high of $59.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blue Bird

In other news, President Britton Smith sold 2,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total value of $120,384.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 83,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,990,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Ted Scartz sold 2,985 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.60, for a total value of $145,071.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 51,863 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,520,541.80. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President Britton Smith sold 2,508 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total transaction of $120,384.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 83,125 shares in the company, valued at $3,990,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 56,240 shares of company stock valued at $2,725,146 in the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Blue Bird

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BLBD. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 1st quarter worth approximately $83,817,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position 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 during the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 635,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,499,000 after acquiring an additional 2,598 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 229,004 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its holdings in Blue Bird by 279.5% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 415,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,587,000 after purchasing an additional 305,868 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.