Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Share Price Passes Above Fifty Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Shares of Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD) passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a fifty day moving average of $73.00 and traded as high as $78.54. Blue Bird shares last traded at $77.68, with a volume of 362,094 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on BLBD shares. Barclays increased their price objective on Blue Bird from $55.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research raised Blue Bird from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Blue Bird from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. DA Davidson set a $86.00 price target on Blue Bird in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Roth Capital assumed coverage on Blue Bird in a report on Thursday, June 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $80.50.

Blue Bird Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.97. The company has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a PE ratio of 19.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.35.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $352.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $335.23 million. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 53.68% and a net margin of 8.91%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.96 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Blue Bird Corporation will post 4.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Blue Bird by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,041,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,931,000 after acquiring an additional 135,562 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 41.8% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,102,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,669,000 after purchasing an additional 324,710 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,048,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,257,000 after purchasing an additional 8,430 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 185.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 925,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,283,000 after purchasing an additional 601,690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 14.5% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 865,136 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,661,000 after purchasing an additional 109,668 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

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.