Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on BLBD. Roth Capital assumed coverage on shares of Blue Bird in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. Freedom Capital downgraded Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays increased their target price on Blue Bird from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. DA Davidson set a $86.00 target price on Blue Bird in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price target on Blue Bird from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $82.17.

Blue Bird Stock Down 1.7%

BLBD opened at $76.20 on Friday. Blue Bird has a 12 month low of $42.95 and a 12 month high of $83.39. The business has a 50-day moving average of $73.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.35.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.12. Blue Bird had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 53.68%. The business had revenue of $352.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $335.23 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.96 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Blue Bird will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blue Bird

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 210.0% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 775 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Blue Bird by 222.7% during the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in Blue Bird by 10,028.6% during the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 709 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Blue Bird in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 85.5% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

About Blue Bird

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.