Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Acquires 186,799 Shares of Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) by 1,879.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 196,739 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 186,799 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned about 0.61% of Blue Bird worth $6,479,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC grew its position in Blue Bird by 162.8% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,840,198 shares of the company's stock valued at $186,977,000 after acquiring an additional 2,998,453 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in Blue Bird by 355.3% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 883,404 shares of the company's stock worth $34,126,000 after acquiring an additional 689,394 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in Blue Bird by 236.7% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 774,175 shares of the company's stock worth $29,906,000 after acquiring an additional 544,248 shares in the last quarter. Intrinsic Edge Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Blue Bird by 540.2% during the fourth quarter. Intrinsic Edge Capital Management LLC now owns 540,435 shares of the company's stock worth $20,877,000 after acquiring an additional 456,015 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Blue Bird by 66.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 782,466 shares of the company's stock worth $30,227,000 after acquiring an additional 312,493 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.59% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on BLBD. Wall Street Zen downgraded Blue Bird from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Barclays lowered their target price on Blue Bird from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $49.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price target on Blue Bird from $67.00 to $61.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $56.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Blue Bird news, Director Phil Horlock sold 13,289 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.70, for a total transaction of $554,151.30. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 270,766 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,290,942.20. This represents a 4.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Blue Bird Trading Up 1.3%

BLBD stock traded up $0.57 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $45.55. The company had a trading volume of 126,957 shares, compared to its average volume of 616,536. The business has a 50-day moving average of $40.50 and a 200-day moving average of $37.69. Blue Bird Corporation has a one year low of $30.04 and a one year high of $55.60. The stock has a market cap of $1.44 billion, a PE ratio of 14.10, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.01. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 64.83% and a net margin of 7.97%. The business had revenue of $358.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $348.23 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Blue Bird Corporation will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Blue Bird

Blue Bird Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, engineers, manufactures, and sells school buses in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Bus and Parts. It offers Type C, Type D, and specialty buses; and alternative power options through its propane powered, gasoline powered, compressed natural gas powered, and electric powered school buses, as well as diesel engines.