Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eight analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $58.21.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on BLBD shares. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $66.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America cut their price target on Blue Bird from $66.00 to $63.50 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Craig Hallum raised their price objective on Blue Bird from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Blue Bird from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th.

Blue Bird Trading Up 0.4 %

NASDAQ BLBD traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $36.35. The company's stock had a trading volume of 450,785 shares, compared to its average volume of 798,980. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.83. Blue Bird has a 52-week low of $29.78 and a 52-week high of $59.40. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $39.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.36.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.03. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 75.22% and a net margin of 8.05%. Research analysts expect that Blue Bird will post 3.77 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 2,848 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.12, for a total transaction of $108,565.76. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 88,664 shares in the company, valued at $3,379,871.68. This represents a 3.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blue Bird

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new position in Blue Bird during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Blue Bird in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Private Trust Co. NA acquired a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the third quarter valued at $38,000. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Blue Bird by 55.0% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,262 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Blue Bird in the 3rd quarter worth about $53,000. 93.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.