Craig Hallum Increases Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Price Target to $71.00

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) had its price target boosted by Craig Hallum from $68.00 to $71.00 in a report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

BLBD has been the subject of a number of other reports. Roth Mkm cut shares of Blue Bird from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $48.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Roth Capital lowered shares of Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $66.00 price target on shares of Blue Bird in a research note on Tuesday. Bank of America raised their price objective on Blue Bird from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their target price on Blue Bird from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.64.

Blue Bird Price Performance

BLBD opened at $40.59 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a market cap of $1.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 1.62. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.58. Blue Bird has a 12-month low of $17.79 and a 12-month high of $59.40.

Insider Transactions at Blue Bird

In other news, President Britton Smith sold 2,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.81, for a total transaction of $124,923.48. Following the sale, the president now owns 80,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,015,532.77. This trade represents a 3.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BLBD. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Blue Bird by 36.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,911,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,292,000 after buying an additional 505,727 shares during the last quarter. American International Group Inc. increased its position in Blue Bird by 9.5% during the first quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 13,782 shares of the company’s stock valued at $528,000 after acquiring an additional 1,191 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Blue Bird during the first quarter valued at $145,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Blue Bird in the first quarter valued at about $4,000,000. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 23.7% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 31,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,217,000 after purchasing an additional 6,088 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

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.