Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Shares Down 4.3% – Here’s Why

Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) was down 4.3% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $37.86 and last traded at $39.39. Approximately 661,614 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 9% from the average daily volume of 605,409 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.17.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on BLBD shares. Roth Mkm cut Blue Bird from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $48.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. BTIG Research started coverage on Blue Bird in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Blue Bird from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Craig Hallum upped their target price on Blue Bird from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on Blue Bird from $66.00 to $63.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.64.

Blue Bird Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $40.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.25, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.58.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 91.12% and a net margin of 7.83%. As a group, analysts expect that Blue Bird Co. will post 3.77 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Blue Bird

In other Blue Bird news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 19,171 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.89, for a total transaction of $822,244.19. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 89,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,832,092.83. The trade was a 17.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blue Bird

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 3rd quarter worth $987,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Blue Bird by 34.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 308,253 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,784,000 after buying an additional 79,129 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Blue Bird by 60.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 58,019 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,783,000 after buying an additional 21,919 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Blue Bird by 95.9% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 52,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,504,000 after purchasing an additional 25,563 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC increased its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 360.0% in the second 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

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.