Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD Stock: Smith Group Asset Management LLC Reduces Stake

Key Points

• Smith Group Asset Management cut its Blue Bird stake by 69.4% in the third quarter, selling 24,527 shares and retaining 10,825 shares valued at approximately $601,000. Institutional investors collectively own 93.59% of BLBD.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $85.33, although Zacks Research downgraded the stock to “strong sell.”
• Blue Bird reported quarterly EPS of $1.28, beating estimates of $1.25, while revenue of $517.16 million exceeded expectations. The stock opened at $57.17, well below its 52-week high of $83.39.

Smith Group Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) by 69.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,825 shares of the company's stock after selling 24,527 shares during the quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC's holdings in Blue Bird were worth $601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 14.0% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 78,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,340,000 after acquiring an additional 9,618 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its stake in Blue Bird by 19.5% during the 3rd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 4,301 shares of the company's stock worth $239,000 after acquiring an additional 701 shares during the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in Blue Bird by 22.3% during the 3rd quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 739,478 shares of the company's stock worth $41,041,000 after acquiring an additional 134,881 shares during the last quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Blue Bird by 87.1% during the 3rd quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 13,718 shares of the company's stock worth $761,000 after acquiring an additional 6,388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Blue Bird by 23.3% during the third quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 5,033 shares of the company's stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 950 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.59% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on BLBD. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Blue Bird from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Roth Capital set a $93.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $86.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $85.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Jeffrey Sanfrey sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.40, for a total transaction of $249,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 35,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,184,686.40. This represents a 10.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Blue Bird Trading Up 0.6%

NASDAQ:BLBD opened at $57.17 on Thursday. 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. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.79 billion, a PE ratio of 6.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.37. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $58.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.97.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $485.73 million. Sell-side analysts expect that Blue Bird Corporation will post 4.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Blue Bird Profile

Blue Bird Corporation NASDAQ: BLBD designs, manufactures, and sells school buses in North America. Its product portfolio includes Type A, Type C, and Type D school buses powered by gasoline, diesel, propane, and electric powertrains. The company also provides replacement parts and aftermarket support for its vehicles.

Founded in 1927, Blue Bird is one of the longstanding manufacturers in the school bus industry. Its buses are used by public and private schools, school districts, contractors, and other student transportation providers.

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