Nicholas Investment Partners LP Buys Shares of 53,208 Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD)

Nicholas Investment Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 53,208 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,865,000. Nicholas Investment Partners LP owned 0.16% of Blue Bird as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Covestor Ltd bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Macroview Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 4th quarter valued at $89,000. Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 1st quarter valued at $120,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the 1st quarter valued at $145,000. Institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Blue Bird Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BLBD opened at $47.89 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $48.99 and its 200-day moving average is $45.22. Blue Bird Co. has a 52-week low of $17.59 and a 52-week high of $59.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 1.40. The company has a market cap of $1.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.39, a PEG ratio of 0.24 and a beta of 1.61.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.42. Blue Bird had a net margin of 7.65% and a return on equity of 116.23%. The company had revenue of $333.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $330.00 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.42 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Blue Bird Co. will post 3.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Blue Bird

In other news, SVP Ted Scartz sold 2,985 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.60, for a total transaction of $145,071.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 51,863 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,520,541.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Ted Scartz sold 2,985 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.60, for a total transaction of $145,071.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 51,863 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,520,541.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, President Britton Smith sold 2,508 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total transaction of $120,384.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 83,125 shares in the company, valued at $3,990,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 58,732 shares of company stock worth $2,835,622. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BLBD. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $43.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $72.00 target price on shares of Blue Bird in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Blue Bird from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Craig Hallum lifted 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.17.

About Blue Bird

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.