Shares of Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD – Get Free Report) traded down 3.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $52.55 and last traded at $52.55. 119,496 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 536,847 shares. The stock had previously closed at $54.63.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several equities analysts recently weighed in on BLBD shares. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on Blue Bird from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Blue Bird from $35.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. Craig Hallum increased their target price on Blue Bird from $54.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Blue Bird from $44.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price objective on Blue Bird from $44.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 20th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.25.
Blue Bird Price Performance
The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.15. The company has a market cap of $1.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.62.
Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.52. Blue Bird had a net margin of 6.36% and a return on equity of 154.10%. The firm had revenue of $345.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $315.00 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Blue Bird Co. will post 2.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Institutional Trading of Blue Bird
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BLBD. Covestor Ltd purchased a new position in Blue Bird during the first quarter worth about $29,000. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Blue Bird by 220.1% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,290 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 887 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Blue Bird in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Tucker Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Blue Bird by 568.8% during the third quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC now owns 3,792 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 3,225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the fourth quarter worth $89,000. 93.59% of the stock is 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.