Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD Shares Acquired by UBS Group AG

Key Points

• UBS Group AG significantly increased its Blue Bird stake, boosting holdings by 161.7% in the fourth quarter to 277,796 shares worth about $13.1 million.
• Blue Bird posted stronger-than-expected quarterly results, reporting $1.00 EPS versus the $0.88 estimate and revenue of $352.64 million, while analysts now forecast 4.35 EPS for the full fiscal year.
• Wall Street sentiment remains broadly positive, with several firms raising price targets and the consensus rating sitting at “Moderate Buy” with an average target price of $75.80.

UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) by 161.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 277,796 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 171,642 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned 0.88% of Blue Bird worth $13,056,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 185.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 925,852 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,283,000 after acquiring an additional 601,690 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new stake in Blue Bird during the third quarter worth approximately $10,932,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in Blue Bird by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 409,872 shares of the company's stock worth $19,166,000 after purchasing an additional 46,801 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Blue Bird by 285.4% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 101,855 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,787,000 after purchasing an additional 75,428 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP increased its position in shares of Blue Bird by 19.4% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 162,817 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,370,000 after purchasing an additional 26,454 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.59% of the company's stock.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BLBD opened at $72.45 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average is $60.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.06. The company has a market cap of $2.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.38. Blue Bird Corporation has a 12-month low of $37.68 and a 12-month high of $81.51. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $352.64 million for 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%.Blue Bird's revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.96 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Blue Bird Corporation will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Blue Bird

In other Blue Bird news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 3,925 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 42,255 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,576,709.90. This represents a 8.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Jeffrey Scott Sanfrey sold 5,192 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.54, for a total transaction of $303,939.68. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 39,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,283,703.94. This trade represents a 11.75% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Blue Bird from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Blue Bird from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $55.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Blue Bird from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blue Bird has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $75.80.

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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