Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Buy

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

BLBD has been the subject of several other reports. Barclays upped their target price on Blue Bird from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Blue Bird from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Blue Bird from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Thursday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have given a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Blue Bird currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.20.

Blue Bird Stock Up 6.6%

Shares of NASDAQ BLBD opened at $59.21 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.95, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.45. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $50.21 and its 200 day moving average is $52.65. Blue Bird has a 52 week low of $30.04 and a 52 week high of $61.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.81.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $333.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $325.74 million. Blue Bird had a net margin of 8.65% and a return on equity of 57.60%. Blue Bird’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.92 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Blue Bird will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Blue Bird

In related news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 7,984 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.39, for a total transaction of $402,313.76. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 49,087 shares in the company, valued at $2,473,493.93. This trade represents a 13.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Phil Horlock sold 15,381 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.42, for a total transaction of $775,510.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 225,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,363,911.70. This trade represents a 6.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blue Bird

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Blue Bird in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted 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 purchasing an additional 702 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Blue Bird by 159.9% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 993 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 611 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Blue Bird by 1,742.3% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 1,237 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

More Blue Bird News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat — Blue Bird reported $1.00 EPS vs. ~$0.80 consensus and revenue ahead of estimates; management highlighted strong revenue growth and an expanding EV backlog, which supports upside to future electric school?bus sales. Blue Bird Q1 Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades / price?target increases — Needham raised its PT to $78 (buy) and BTIG reaffirmed a buy with a $65 PT; analyst optimism amplifies buying interest and supports a higher valuation. Needham PT Raise BTIG Reaffirmation
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction & coverage — Multiple outlets are reporting the strong Q1 and EV backlog narrative, and intraday volume is elevated versus average, indicating institutional or momentum-driven flows. MSN Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Short?interest data appears to be invalid/zero in the latest release (shows 0 shares / NaN change), so there’s no clear short?pressure signal to explain the move. This likely has little explanatory power until corrected.
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector/peer commentary — Recent pieces compare Blue Bird to other automotive/EV names (e.g., Tesla) and track relative performance vs. peers; useful context but not direct catalysts. BLBD vs TSLA Sector Performance

About Blue Bird

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.