Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) Shares Purchased by Hodges Capital Management Inc.

Hodges Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) by 76.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 122,385 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 53,185 shares during the period. Hodges Capital Management Inc. owned 0.38% of Blue Bird worth $4,728,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new position in Blue Bird in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Blue Bird in the 3rd quarter worth $53,000. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Blue Bird by 75.3% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,420 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 610 shares in the last quarter. 93.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Blue Bird Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BLBD traded up $1.50 during trading on Thursday, hitting $37.23. The stock had a trading volume of 1,845,395 shares, compared to its average volume of 792,425. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.56. Blue Bird Co. has a 12-month low of $29.00 and a 12-month high of $59.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.03. Blue Bird had a net margin of 7.83% and a return on equity of 91.12%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Blue Bird Co. will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blue Bird

In other Blue Bird news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 19,171 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.89, for a total value of $822,244.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 89,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,832,092.83. The trade was a 17.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on BLBD shares. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $66.00 to $63.50 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on Blue Bird in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on Blue Bird from $66.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded Blue Bird from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, Craig Hallum upped their target price on Blue Bird from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $58.21.

Blue Bird 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.