Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Roth Mkm

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by equities researchers at Roth Mkm in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $40.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $35.00. Roth Mkm’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 11.20% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on BLBD. Barclays boosted their price target on Blue Bird from $25.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. StockNews.com cut Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on Blue Bird in a report on Thursday, February 29th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $44.00 price objective on the stock. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.42.

Blue Bird Stock Performance

Shares of BLBD traded up $1.99 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $35.97. 80,079 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 508,397. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $34.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 0.54. Blue Bird has a twelve month low of $17.43 and a twelve month high of $39.01. The company has a market capitalization of $1.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.01, a PEG ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.36.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.52. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 223.85% and a net margin of 5.04%. The business had revenue of $317.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $265.00 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Blue Bird will post 1.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Phil Horlock sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total value of $1,450,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 449,812 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,044,548. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Blue Bird news, CEO Phil Horlock sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.00, for a total value of $1,450,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 449,812 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,044,548. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, President Britton Smith sold 6,228 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.49, for a total value of $208,575.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 87,250 shares in the company, valued at $2,922,002.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,257,597 shares of company stock valued at $139,735,973. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Blue Bird

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in Blue Bird by 2,177.4% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 55,342 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,122,000 after purchasing an additional 52,912 shares in the last quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC boosted its stake in Blue Bird by 35.8% in the first quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 44,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,715,000 after acquiring an additional 11,793 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Blue Bird in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,702,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Blue Bird in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $370,000. Finally, Brightline Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Blue Bird in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,279,000. 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.