Critical Comparison: Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) vs. XOS (NASDAQ:XOS)

XOS (NASDAQ:XOS) and Blue Bird (NASDAQ:BLBD) are both small-cap auto/tires/trucks companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, risk and institutional ownership.

Risk and Volatility

XOS has a beta of 1.64, suggesting that its share price is 64% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Blue Bird has a beta of 1.4, suggesting that its share price is 40% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares XOS and Blue Bird’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
XOS	-101.36%	-117.14%	-45.90%
Blue Bird	7.97%	64.83%	20.87%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

12.9% of XOS shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.6% of Blue Bird shares are held by institutional investors. 20.9% of XOS shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of Blue Bird shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares XOS and Blue Bird”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
XOS	$55.96 million	0.46	-$50.16 million	($6.17)	-0.50
Blue Bird	$1.35 billion	1.01	$105.55 million	$3.23	13.28

Blue Bird has higher revenue and earnings than XOS. XOS is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Blue Bird, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for XOS and Blue Bird, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
XOS	0	3	2	1	2.67
Blue Bird	0	2	6	0	2.75

XOS presently has a consensus target price of $8.75, suggesting a potential upside of 185.02%. Blue Bird has a consensus target price of $56.79, suggesting a potential upside of 32.34%. Given XOS’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe XOS is more favorable than Blue Bird.

Summary

Blue Bird beats XOS on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About XOS

Xos, Inc. is an electric mobility company engaged in manufacturing electric trucks. The firm designs and develops fully electric battery mobility systems specifically for commercial fleets. The company was founded by Dakota Semler and Giordano Sordoni on July 29, 2020 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA.

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. The company also sells replacement bus parts; and provides financing services and extended warranties related to its products. Blue Bird Corporation sells its products through drop ship and a network of dealers, as well as directly to fleet operators, the United States government, and state governments; independent service centers; and maintains a parts distribution center. Blue Bird Corporation was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Macon, Georgia.