Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Monday.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on BLBD. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $72.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Barclays increased their target price on Blue Bird from $43.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Craig Hallum raised their target price on Blue Bird from $54.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of Blue Bird from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.17.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BLBD traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $50.19. 271,159 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 559,252. Blue Bird has a 12 month low of $17.59 and a 12 month high of $59.40. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.66. The firm has a market cap of $1.62 billion, a PE ratio of 20.32, a PEG ratio of 0.25 and a beta of 1.61.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 5,000 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 88,926 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,186,636.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Blue Bird news, President Britton Smith sold 2,508 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the president now owns 83,125 shares in the company, valued at $3,990,000. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 5,000 shares of the business’s 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,186,636.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 61,240 shares of company stock valued at $2,960,546. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Blue Bird

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP increased its stake in Blue Bird by 43.9% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning acquired a new position in shares of Blue Bird in the 2nd quarter valued at $282,000. Algert Global LLC increased its position in shares of Blue Bird by 360.0% in the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 105,651 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,689,000 after buying an additional 82,681 shares in the last quarter. Scientech Research LLC bought a new stake in shares of Blue Bird in the 2nd quarter valued at $976,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Blue Bird by 26.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 12,089 shares of the company’s stock worth $651,000 after buying an additional 2,491 shares during the period. 93.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.