JPMorgan Chase & Co. Buys 601,690 Shares of Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD) by 185.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 925,852 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 601,690 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Blue Bird were worth $53,283,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Blue Bird by 40.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,267,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,849,000 after purchasing an additional 647,637 shares in the last quarter. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC now owns 483,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,814,000 after buying an additional 35,880 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of Blue Bird by 383.1% during the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 425,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,471,000 after buying an additional 337,196 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 43.2% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 363,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,891,000 after buying an additional 109,449 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 0.4% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 348,076 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,023,000 after buying an additional 1,335 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Blue Bird news, COO Jeffrey Scott Sanfrey sold 5,192 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.54, for a total value of $303,939.68. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 39,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,283,703.94. This represents a 11.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 3,925 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.98, for a total transaction of $239,346.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 42,255 shares in the company, valued at $2,576,709.90. The trade was a 8.50% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Shares of BLBD opened at $53.43 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $54.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.67. The company has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.40. Blue Bird Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $30.04 and a fifty-two week high of $62.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.81.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $333.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $325.74 million. Blue Bird had a return on equity of 57.60% and a net margin of 8.65%.The company’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.92 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Blue Bird Corporation will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Blue Bird from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.20.

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.