Aurora Investment Counsel Takes $2.11 Million Position in Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD

Aurora Investment Counsel bought a new position in Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 37,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,108,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BLBD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 185.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 925,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,283,000 after purchasing an additional 601,690 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Blue Bird by 197.3% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 712,707 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,497,000 after buying an additional 472,990 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 383.1% in the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 425,214 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,471,000 after acquiring an additional 337,196 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL acquired a new stake in shares of Blue Bird in the third quarter worth $10,932,000. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 161.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 277,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,056,000 after acquiring an additional 171,642 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Blue Bird Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of BLBD stock opened at $78.34 on Friday. Blue Bird Corporation has a 1-year low of $42.00 and a 1-year high of $81.51. The firm has a market cap of $2.48 billion, a PE ratio of 19.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a 50-day moving average of $73.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.12. The firm 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.96 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Blue Bird Corporation will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on BLBD shares. Freedom Capital downgraded shares of Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. BTIG Research increased their price target on Blue Bird from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Blue Bird from $55.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note 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. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on Blue Bird from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Blue Bird has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.50.

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.