Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Downgraded by Freedom Capital to “Hold”

Freedom Capital cut shares of Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on BLBD. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. BTIG Research raised their target price on shares of Blue Bird from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Blue Bird from $55.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Blue Bird from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Blue Bird presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.80.

Blue Bird Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:BLBD opened at $71.02 on Thursday. Blue Bird has a 52 week low of $36.43 and a 52 week high of $81.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 1.83. The company has a market capitalization of $2.25 billion, a PE ratio of 17.45, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $59.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.52.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $352.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $335.23 million. Blue Bird had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 53.68%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.96 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Blue Bird will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Jeffrey Scott Sanfrey sold 5,192 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.54, for a total transaction of $303,939.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 39,011 shares in the company, valued at $2,283,703.94. This represents a 11.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 3,925 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.98, for a total transaction of $239,346.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 42,255 shares in the company, valued at $2,576,709.90. The trade was a 8.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blue Bird

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BLBD. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in Blue Bird by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,094 shares of the company’s stock worth $618,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Blue Bird by 30.9% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,885 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 681 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in shares of Blue Bird by 2,090.5% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,461 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 3,303 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Blue Bird by 12.5% in the 2nd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 12,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $547,000 after purchasing an additional 1,412 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Blue Bird in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,799,000. 93.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Blue Bird News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Blue Bird this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Blue Bird posted fiscal Q2 results that beat expectations, with earnings per share of $1.00 versus the $0.88 consensus and revenue of about $352.6 million versus estimates near $335.2 million, signaling better-than-expected demand and execution. Blue Bird earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue rose 5.9% year over year in the latest quarter, and operating cash flow increased, which supports the view that the business is growing while maintaining a solid balance sheet. Blue Bird stock rises on Q2 2026 earnings
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG and Needham both raised price targets this week and kept buy ratings, with targets moved to $80 and $86, reinforcing a positive Wall Street outlook for the stock. Analyst price target updates
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent analyst coverage still shows Blue Bird as a consensus “Moderate Buy,” and several earnings-call writeups point to confidence in expansion, but these are largely confirmations of the post-earnings momentum rather than new catalysts. Earnings call highlights
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the beat, gross profit and diluted EPS were slightly below the prior year, and higher operating costs plus increased capital spending could temper margin expansion going forward. Blue Bird Q2 results details

About Blue Bird

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.