Needham & Company LLC Issues Positive Forecast for Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) Stock Price

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) had its target price increased by Needham & Company LLC from $70.00 to $78.00 in a research report report published on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Blue Bird from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Blue Bird in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Bank of America raised their price objective on Blue Bird from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Blue Bird from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Blue Bird in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Blue Bird has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.20.

Blue Bird Stock Up 11.8%

Shares of BLBD stock opened at $55.54 on Thursday. Blue Bird has a 12 month low of $30.04 and a 12 month high of $61.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $1.76 billion, a PE ratio of 14.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $50.07 and a 200-day moving average of $52.47.

Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $333.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $325.74 million. Blue Bird had a net margin of 8.65% and a return on equity of 60.76%. Blue Bird’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.92 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Blue Bird will post 3.86 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Blue Bird

In other Blue Bird news, CFO Razvan Radulescu sold 7,984 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.39, for a total value of $402,313.76. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 49,087 shares in the company, valued at $2,473,493.93. This represents a 13.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Phil Horlock sold 15,381 shares of Blue Bird stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.42, for a total value of $775,510.02. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 225,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,363,911.70. The trade was a 6.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blue Bird

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. PFG Advisors boosted its position in Blue Bird by 2.6% in the second quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 9,789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its stake in shares of Blue Bird by 0.7% in the second quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 40,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,732,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Redmond Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Redmond Asset Management LLC now owns 34,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,483,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Blue Bird by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 4,464 shares of the company’s stock worth $210,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in Blue Bird by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 67,007 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,856,000 after acquiring an additional 453 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.59% of the company’s stock.

More Blue Bird News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat Street expectations: Blue Bird reported $1.00 EPS vs. $0.80 consensus and revenue of ~$333.1M (above estimates), with improving margins and high ROE — a core reason shares are rising. Earnings Release & Materials
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted strong revenue growth and an expanding electric‑vehicle (EV) backlog on the earnings call — reinforcing revenue visibility in EV and fleet replacement markets. Earnings Call Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Needham raised its price target to $78 (buy), signaling more upside from current levels and adding buy‑side momentum. Needham PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: BTIG reaffirmed a Buy rating with a $65 target, contributing to consensus positive sentiment from analysts. BTIG Reaffirmation
• Neutral Sentiment: Company released slides, transcript and presentation materials from the Q1 call (useful for modeling forward revenue and EV backlog timing). Earnings Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: Management updated FY2026 guidance in the release, but the public note looked garbled in some feeds — investors should review the formal press release/slides for clarified EPS and revenue guidance. Conference Materials
• Negative Sentiment: Notable insider and institutional selling was reported (multiple executive share disposals and large fund reductions by firms like American Century and FMR), which could limit upside if it persists. Quiver Quantitative Overview
• Negative Sentiment: Operating cash flow slipped year‑over‑year (reported decline in cash from operations) and total liabilities increased — items investors should watch for potential short‑term cash conversion pressure. Balance Sheet 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.