Castellan Group Makes New $7.75 Million Investment in Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD)

Castellan Group purchased a new position in Blue Bird Co. (NASDAQ:BLBD) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 200,574 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,748,000. Blue Bird comprises approximately 3.4% of Castellan Group’s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest position. Castellan Group owned 0.62% of Blue Bird at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the third quarter worth $26,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the third quarter worth $35,000. Private Trust Co. NA purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the third quarter worth $38,000. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Blue Bird during the third quarter worth $53,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 75.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,420 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BLBD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Craig Hallum raised their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $68.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $66.00 to $63.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Blue Bird from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $66.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 2,848 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.12, for a total value of $108,565.76. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 88,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,379,871.68. The trade was a 3.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Blue Bird Price Performance

Shares of BLBD stock opened at $35.69 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $39.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.63. Blue Bird Co. has a 12 month low of $29.78 and a 12 month high of $59.40. The company has a market capitalization of $1.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.56.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.03. Blue Bird had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 75.22%. Analysts predict that Blue Bird Co. will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current year.

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.