39,400 Shares in Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD Acquired by VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems acquired 39,400 Blue Bird shares worth approximately $3.11 million, while institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 93.59% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally bullish outlook, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $85.33; targets range from $86 to $95 among recent analyst updates.
• Blue Bird exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.28 in EPS versus the $1.25 estimate and revenue of $517.16 million versus the $485.73 million consensus.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in shares of Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 39,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,111,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al owned approximately 0.12% of Blue Bird at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BLBD. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Blue Bird by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,094 shares of the company's stock worth $618,000 after buying an additional 820 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 30.9% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,885 shares of the company's stock worth $93,000 after acquiring an additional 681 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in Blue Bird by 2,090.5% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,461 shares of the company's stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 3,303 shares during the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in Blue Bird by 12.5% during the second quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 12,676 shares of the company's stock valued at $547,000 after purchasing an additional 1,412 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in Blue Bird in the second quarter valued at about $3,799,000. 93.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Roth Capital set a $93.00 price target on Blue Bird in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Zacks Research upgraded Blue Bird from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of Blue Bird from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $86.00 target price on shares of Blue Bird in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $85.33.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BLBD opened at $62.05 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.36. The business has a 50-day moving average of $69.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.42. Blue Bird Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $46.14 and a fifty-two week high of $83.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.03. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 39.97% and a net margin of 17.48%.The business had revenue of $517.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $485.73 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Blue Bird Corporation will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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