Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Reaches New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after BTIG Research raised their price target on the stock from $65.00 to $80.00. BTIG Research currently has a buy rating on the stock. Blue Bird traded as high as $75.01 and last traded at $74.7310, with a volume of 10613 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $65.04.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on BLBD. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $75.00 price objective on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on Blue Bird from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Blue Bird presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blue Bird

In other Blue Bird news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 3,925 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.98, for a total value of $239,346.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 42,255 shares in the company, valued at $2,576,709.90. This trade represents a 8.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey Scott Sanfrey sold 5,192 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.54, for a total transaction of $303,939.68. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 39,011 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,283,703.94. This represents a 11.75% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Blue Bird

Here are the key news stories impacting Blue Bird this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results: Revenue of ~$352.6M topped estimates and Blue Bird reported EPS above/near street expectations; operating profit improved. The company also highlighted solid unit sales and demand momentum, which supported the market move. Business Wire: Q2 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Raised FY revenue outlook: management updated fiscal?2026 revenue guidance to about $1.8B (well above prior consensus), giving investors clearer top?line visibility and underpinning upside to estimates. MarketBeat: Earnings / Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades/price?target raises: BTIG boosted its target to $80 (Buy) and Needham raised its target to $86 (Buy), increasing upside expectations and supporting bullish flows. Benzinga: BTIG / Needham Upgrades
• Positive Sentiment: Cash flow and liquidity improved: operating cash flow rose and cash balances increased year?over?year, giving the company flexibility for capex (including electrification investments). This reduces financing risk as Blue Bird scales EV production. QuiverQuant: Financial Highlights
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call / transcript and slides posted — useful for detail on margin drivers, EV pipeline and dealer backlog but not an immediate catalyst by itself. Company: Q2 Press Release & Slides
• Neutral Sentiment: Municipal EV adoption story continues (e.g., Rio Bravo school district project) — a positive long?run demand signal but a longer?dated catalyst for revenues. PR Newswire: Electric Bus Project
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure / mixed profitability: gross profit was slightly down and net income / diluted EPS showed small year?over?year declines in some reports, driven by higher cost of sales — a reminder that revenue growth isn’t fully translating to margin expansion yet. QuiverQuant: Margin Notes
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: several insiders sold shares recently (with a small insider purchase noted), which can create short?term investor caution about near?term insiders’ views. QuiverQuant: Insider Activity

Institutional Trading of Blue Bird

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 210.0% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 775 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Blue Bird by 222.7% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 823 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 568 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 10,028.6% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 709 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 4th quarter worth about $63,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Blue Bird Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.81. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $58.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.38.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.20. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 57.60% and a net margin of 8.65%.The company had revenue of $333.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $325.74 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.92 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Blue Bird Corporation will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Blue Bird Company Profile

Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ: BLBD) is a leading manufacturer of buses and mass transportation vehicles headquartered in Fort Valley, Georgia. The company’s core business encompasses the design, engineering, and production of school buses and activity buses, with a product lineup that includes conventional (Type C) models, transit-style (Type D) models and specialty configurations for special-needs and activity transport. In recent years, Blue Bird has expanded its offerings to include zero-emission electric school buses, reflecting its commitment to advanced propulsion technologies and environmental sustainability.

Established in 1927, Blue Bird has built a legacy of safety and reliability in student transportation.