Ellsworth Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD

Ellsworth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 14,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $853,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Blue Bird by 40.0% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,267,131 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,849,000 after purchasing an additional 647,637 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in Blue Bird by 13.6% during the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 936,495 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,314,000 after buying an additional 112,197 shares in the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 27.9% during the 2nd quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 823,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,525,000 after buying an additional 179,500 shares during the last quarter. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC grew its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC now owns 447,430 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,311,000 after acquiring an additional 16,765 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in shares of Blue Bird by 88.1% in the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 369,992 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,354,000 after acquiring an additional 173,253 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Blue Bird Stock Down 2.1%

BLBD opened at $50.74 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $51.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.26. Blue Bird Corporation has a 1-year low of $30.04 and a 1-year high of $61.95. The stock has a market cap of $1.61 billion, a PE ratio of 13.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 24th. The company reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $409.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $380.37 million. Blue Bird had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 62.87%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.77 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Blue Bird Corporation will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BLBD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America increased their price target on Blue Bird from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Zacks Research cut shares of Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Monday, November 3rd. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Blue Bird from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.60.

Insider Transactions at Blue Bird

In other news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 7,984 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.39, for a total value of $402,313.76. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 49,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,473,493.93. This represents a 13.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Phil Horlock sold 15,381 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.42, for a total value of $775,510.02. Following the sale, the director directly owned 225,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,363,911.70. The trade was a 6.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Blue Bird Profile

Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ: BLBD) is a leading manufacturer of buses and mass transportation vehicles headquartered in Fort Valley, Georgia. The company’s core business encompasses the design, engineering, and production of school buses and activity buses, with a product lineup that includes conventional (Type C) models, transit-style (Type D) models and specialty configurations for special-needs and activity transport. In recent years, Blue Bird has expanded its offerings to include zero-emission electric school buses, reflecting its commitment to advanced propulsion technologies and environmental sustainability.

Established in 1927, Blue Bird has built a legacy of safety and reliability in student transportation.