Trexquant Investment LP Acquires Shares of 170,996 Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD)

Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 170,996 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,606,000. Trexquant Investment LP owned approximately 0.53% of Blue Bird at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new position in Blue Bird in the third quarter worth $26,000. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 75.3% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares in the last quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC now owns 4,729 shares of the company’s stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 640 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Blue Bird by 9.3% during the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 8,235 shares of the company’s stock worth $395,000 after buying an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in Blue Bird by 14.9% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 5,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $276,000 after buying an additional 744 shares in the last quarter. 93.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Blue Bird news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 2,848 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.12, for a total value of $108,565.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 88,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,379,871.68. The trade was a 3.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BLBD opened at $32.43 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.44. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $34.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $39.93. The stock has a market cap of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 10.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.38. Blue Bird Co. has a one year low of $30.04 and a one year high of $59.40.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, analysts forecast that Blue Bird Co. will post 3.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BLBD. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Blue Bird from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Needham & Company LLC dropped 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, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.