In the latest close session, Blue Bird (BLBD) was down 1.06% at $54.84. The stock's change was more than the S&P 500's daily loss of 2.71%. At the same time, the Dow lost 1.9%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 3.56%.
The school bus maker's shares have seen a decrease of 4.86% over the last month, not keeping up with the Auto-Tires-Trucks sector's gain of 14.16% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.5%.
Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of Blue Bird in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company is forecasted to report an EPS of $0.97, showcasing a 25.97% upward movement from the corresponding quarter of the prior year. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $380 million, reflecting a 8.51% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.
Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $4.04 per share and revenue of $1.45 billion, indicating changes of +16.76% and 0%, respectively, compared to the previous year.
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for Blue Bird should also be noted by investors. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the business and profitability.
Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection remained stagnant. At present, Blue Bird boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
In terms of valuation, Blue Bird is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 13.35. This denotes no noticeable deviation relative to the industry average Forward P/E of 13.35.
Investors should also note that BLBD has a PEG ratio of 1.46 right now. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. The average PEG ratio for the Automotive - Domestic industry stood at 2.39 at the close of the market yesterday.
The Automotive - Domestic industry is part of the Auto-Tires-Trucks sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 174, putting it in the bottom 30% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.
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Blue Bird Corporation (BLBD): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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