EntryPoint Capital LLC Takes $291,000 Position in Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD

Key Points

• EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Blue Bird Corporation, purchasing 8,995 shares valued at approximately $291,000 in the first quarter of the year.
• The stock price of Blue Bird Corporation increased by 1.2%, trading at $55.31, with a market capitalization of $1.75 billion and a twelve-month high of $60.45.
• Blue Bird reported better-than-expected earnings, with $1.19 EPS for the quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $0.90 and showing a 19.4% year-over-year revenue growth.

EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 8,995 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $291,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BLBD. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 59,365 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,293,000 after buying an additional 2,357 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 44.1% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,204 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 689,394 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Blue Bird by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 527,289 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,370,000 after buying an additional 28,460 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Blue Bird by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 19,679 shares of the company's stock valued at $760,000 after buying an additional 1,099 shares in the last quarter. 93.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Shares of BLBD stock traded up $0.64 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $58.81. The company had a trading volume of 127,967 shares, compared to its average volume of 568,000. Blue Bird Corporation has a 12-month low of $30.04 and a 12-month high of $60.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.58. The company has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.79, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.50. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $47.68 and a 200-day moving average of $40.23.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.29. Blue Bird had a net margin of 8.16% and a return on equity of 61.66%. The firm had revenue of $398.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $377.64 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.91 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Blue Bird Corporation will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Blue Bird

In other news, Director Phil Horlock sold 21,129 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.16, for a total transaction of $1,228,862.64. Following the sale, the director owned 240,766 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,002,950.56. The trade was a 8.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Ted Scartz sold 8,877 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.22, for a total value of $490,187.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 48,769 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,693,024.18. This trade represents a 15.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 139,832 shares of company stock valued at $7,559,425 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on BLBD shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Blue Bird from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Blue Bird from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on Blue Bird from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.36.

Blue Bird Profile

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.