Deutsche Bank AG Acquires 21,012 Shares of Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD)

Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) by 25.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 102,193 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,012 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned 0.32% of Blue Bird worth $3,948,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BLBD. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its position in Blue Bird by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 1,000 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Quarry LP raised its position in Blue Bird by 55.0% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,262 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its position in Blue Bird by 75.3% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,420 shares of the company's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in Blue Bird by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,204 shares of the company's stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares during the period. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Blue Bird in the 4th quarter worth about $87,000. 93.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blue Bird Trading Down 1.5%

BLBD stock traded down $0.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $38.63. The company had a trading volume of 252,434 shares, compared to its average volume of 643,197. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a market capitalization of $1.22 billion, a PE ratio of 11.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.43. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $35.65 and a 200 day moving average of $37.52. Blue Bird Co. has a 12 month low of $30.04 and a 12 month high of $59.40.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.01. Blue Bird had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 75.22%. The business had revenue of $358.85 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $348.23 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Blue Bird Co. will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BLBD. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Blue Bird from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of Blue Bird from $67.00 to $61.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $66.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $56.79.

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.