Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC Purchases New Holdings in Blue Bird Corporation $BLBD

Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird Corporation (NASDAQ:BLBD) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 647,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,129,758,000. Blue Bird makes up 3.5% of Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 83,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,925,000 after purchasing an additional 16,501 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Blue Bird by 279.7% in the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 21,540 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,012,000 after purchasing an additional 15,867 shares during the period. UBS Group AG lifted its position in Blue Bird by 161.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 277,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,056,000 after purchasing an additional 171,642 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Blue Bird by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,041,085 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,931,000 after purchasing an additional 135,562 shares during the period. Finally, Royce & Associates LP grew its stake in Blue Bird by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 177,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,362,000 after buying an additional 15,107 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on BLBD shares. Freedom Capital raised shares of Blue Bird from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Blue Bird from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Roth Capital set a $93.00 target price on Blue Bird in a research note on Monday, August 10th. BTIG Research raised their target price on Blue Bird from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Blue Bird from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Blue Bird currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.33.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BLBD opened at $61.89 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $73.68 and a 200-day moving average of $66.03. The company has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of 7.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.64. Blue Bird Corporation has a 52-week low of $46.14 and a 52-week high of $83.39.

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

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.