Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Share Price Crosses Above 50 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD) shares passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $58.56 and traded as high as $62.05. Blue Bird shares last traded at $61.0220, with a volume of 624,409 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays upped their price objective on Blue Bird from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Freedom Capital upgraded Blue Bird from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. DA Davidson raised their target price on Blue Bird from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Blue Bird from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Blue Bird from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.33.

Blue Bird Stock Up 5.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The company has a market capitalization of $1.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.46. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $58.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $63.19.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.03. Blue Bird had a net margin of 17.48% and a return on equity of 39.97%. The company had revenue of $517.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $485.73 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Blue Bird Corporation will post 4.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Blue Bird

In related news, COO Jeffrey Sanfrey sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.40, for a total value of $249,600.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 35,011 shares in the company, valued at $2,184,686.40. This represents a 10.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blue Bird

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Blue Bird during the second quarter worth $207,493,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in Blue Bird in the second quarter valued at $94,222,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird in the second quarter valued at $63,565,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Blue Bird by 41.8% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,102,335 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,669,000 after buying an additional 324,710 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird in the second quarter valued at $51,129,758. 93.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Blue Bird

Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD) designs, manufactures, and sells school buses in North America. Its product portfolio includes Type A, Type C, and Type D school buses powered by gasoline, diesel, propane, and electric powertrains. The company also provides replacement parts and aftermarket support for its vehicles.

Founded in 1927, Blue Bird is one of the longstanding manufacturers in the school bus industry. Its buses are used by public and private schools, school districts, contractors, and other student transportation providers.