Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on GNTX. UBS Group set a $25.00 price objective on Gentex in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Robert W. Baird set a $26.00 price target on Gentex in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. B. Riley Financial lowered their price objective on Gentex from $32.00 to $28.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Gentex in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Gentex has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.71.

Gentex Stock Performance

GNTX opened at $23.30 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.39 and a beta of 0.76. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $23.91 and a 200 day moving average of $25.01. Gentex has a fifty-two week low of $20.28 and a fifty-two week high of $29.38.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The auto parts company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.01. Gentex had a net margin of 15.19% and a return on equity of 16.05%. The business had revenue of $644.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $650.90 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.39 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Gentex will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 8th will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 8th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Gentex’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.59%.

Insider Transactions at Gentex

In other news, CEO Steven R. Downing sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total value of $866,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 211,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,238,832.50. This trade represents a 14.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Kevin C. Nash sold 11,885 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.98, for a total transaction of $296,887.30. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,484,561.40. This represents a 16.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 58,133 shares of company stock valued at $1,442,313. 0.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gentex

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Gentex by 33.1% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 189,561 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $4,418,000 after acquiring an additional 47,150 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Gentex by 1.8% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,321,634 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $30,794,000 after purchasing an additional 23,454 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Gentex by 255.6% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 81,142 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,891,000 after purchasing an additional 58,323 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its position in Gentex by 3.1% during the second quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 85,767 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,886,000 after purchasing an additional 2,548 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in Gentex by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 248,598 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $5,467,000 after buying an additional 23,418 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.76% of the company’s stock.

About Gentex

Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ: GNTX) is a global technology company specializing in the design and manufacture of automotive and aerospace products. The company’s primary business centers on automatic-dimming rearview mirrors, advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), and camera-based driver monitoring technologies. In the automotive sector, Gentex supplies exterior and interior mirrors with integrated electronics, connectivity features, and safety capabilities to many of the world’s leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).