6,786 Shares in Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) Acquired by Perpetual Ltd

Perpetual Ltd purchased a new position in Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 6,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $262,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 43.9% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,174 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new stake in shares of Blue Bird in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 8,235 shares of the company’s stock worth $395,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the period. Creative Planning grew its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 5,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the period. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Blue Bird during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 19,171 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.89, for a total value of $822,244.19. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 89,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,832,092.83. This trade represents a 17.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on BLBD shares. Bank of America lowered their target price on Blue Bird from $66.00 to $63.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com upgraded Blue Bird from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Craig Hallum increased their target price on Blue Bird from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Roth Capital cut Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 target price on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Blue Bird currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.64.

Blue Bird Trading Down 5.4 %

Shares of Blue Bird stock opened at $38.96 on Friday. Blue Bird Co. has a fifty-two week low of $27.09 and a fifty-two week high of $59.40. The firm has a market cap of $1.25 billion, a PE ratio of 12.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.58. The business’s fifty day moving average is $40.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.95. 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) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.73. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 91.12% and a net margin of 7.83%. Analysts anticipate that Blue Bird Co. will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current year.

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.