Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Raises Stake in Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) by 2,177.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 55,342 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 52,912 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Blue Bird worth $2,122,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in shares of Blue Bird by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 828,339 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,332,000 after purchasing an additional 101,482 shares during the period. Boston Partners bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the fourth quarter worth about $2,951,000. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its position in Blue Bird by 115.7% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 179,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,843,000 after purchasing an additional 96,339 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC grew its position in Blue Bird by 210.2% in the 4th quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 66,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,798,000 after purchasing an additional 45,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 369.8% in the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 61,207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,650,000 after purchasing an additional 48,178 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Blue Bird Stock Down 2.1 %

BLBD stock traded down $1.07 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $49.82. The stock had a trading volume of 229,302 shares, compared to its average volume of 552,664. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.44, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. Blue Bird Co. has a 1-year low of $17.59 and a 1-year high of $59.40. The company has a fifty day moving average of $49.74 and a 200 day moving average of $37.64.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.52. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 154.10% and a net margin of 6.36%. The company had revenue of $345.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $315.00 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Blue Bird Co. will post 2.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BLBD. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Blue Bird from $44.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Blue Bird from $35.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Blue Bird from $44.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 20th. Roth Mkm raised their price objective on Blue Bird from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Finally, Craig Hallum raised their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $54.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Blue Bird has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $49.25.

Blue Bird Company 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.