Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 15,062 Shares of Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its Blue Bird stake by 36.2%, acquiring 15,062 additional shares to own 56,625 shares valued at approximately $3.2 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 93.59% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with seven analysts rating Blue Bird a Buy and two a Hold. The stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $82.17.
• Blue Bird beat quarterly expectations with $1.00 in EPS versus an $0.88 estimate and revenue of $352.63 million versus $335.23 million expected, although revenue declined 1.7% year over year.

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD - Free Report) by 36.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,625 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 15,062 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Blue Bird worth $3,216,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on BLBD shares. BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Blue Bird from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research upgraded Blue Bird from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered Blue Bird from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 25th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $86.00 price target on Blue Bird in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $82.17.

Blue Bird Trading Down 2.1%

BLBD opened at $72.32 on Thursday. The company's 50 day moving average is $74.37 and its 200-day moving average is $63.87. Blue Bird Corporation has a 1-year low of $42.95 and a 1-year high of $83.39. 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 cap of $2.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.77, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.35.

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

Blue Bird Profile

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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