Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) Shares Sold by Boston Partners

Boston Partners lessened its position in Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) by 96.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,680 shares of the company's stock after selling 369,538 shares during the period. Boston Partners' holdings in Blue Bird were worth $451,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Blue Bird by 268.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,841,745 shares of the company's stock valued at $88,330,000 after buying an additional 1,341,259 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Blue Bird by 26.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 752,228 shares of the company's stock worth $36,084,000 after buying an additional 156,298 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Blue Bird by 8.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 725,573 shares of the company's stock worth $34,798,000 after purchasing an additional 56,449 shares in the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its position in shares of Blue Bird by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 641,265 shares of the company's stock worth $24,772,000 after purchasing an additional 5,345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its stake in Blue Bird by 2.4% in the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 327,857 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,724,000 after acquiring an additional 7,770 shares during the period. 93.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Blue Bird Price Performance

Blue Bird stock traded down $0.24 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $33.96. 341,440 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 648,425. The stock's fifty day moving average is $36.06 and its 200-day moving average is $40.62. Blue Bird Co. has a 12 month low of $30.67 and a 12 month high of $59.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.51, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.58.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.03. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 75.22% and a net margin of 8.05%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Blue Bird Co. will post 3.86 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on BLBD. StockNews.com lowered shares of Blue Bird from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on Blue Bird from $66.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $58.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Blue Bird news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 2,848 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.12, for a total transaction of $108,565.76. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 88,664 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,379,871.68. This represents a 3.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.