Fifth Third Bancorp Buys Shares of 18,759 Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD

Key Points

• Fifth Third Bancorp disclosed a new first-quarter stake in Blue Bird Corporation, buying 18,759 shares valued at about $1.07 million.
• Blue Bird reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with EPS of $1.00 versus the $0.88 estimate and revenue of $352.63 million above forecasts.
• Wall Street sentiment remains mostly positive, with seven Buy ratings, two Hold ratings, and an average price target of $82.17 for BLBD.

Fifth Third Bancorp purchased a new stake in Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 18,759 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,065,000. Fifth Third Bancorp owned about 0.06% of Blue Bird as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Blue Bird by 210.0% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 775 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Blue Bird by 222.7% in the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 823 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 568 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in Blue Bird by 10,028.6% in the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 709 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 702 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Blue Bird in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Blue Bird in the fourth quarter valued at about $63,000. Institutional investors own 93.59% of the company's stock.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Blue Bird stock opened at $76.20 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a PE ratio of 18.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.35. Blue Bird Corporation has a 12 month low of $42.95 and a 12 month high of $83.39. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $73.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $63.20.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.12. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 53.68% and a net margin of 8.91%.The firm had revenue of $352.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $335.23 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.96 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Blue Bird Corporation will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BLBD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Roth Capital began coverage on shares of Blue Bird in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. DA Davidson set a $86.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Blue Bird from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Blue Bird from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blue Bird currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $82.17.

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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