Vestcor Inc Lowers Stock Holdings in Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc decreased its holdings in Gentex Corporation by 46.2%, selling 12,335 shares, leaving it with a total of 14,391 shares valued at approximately $335,000.
• Gentex recently reported earnings per share of $0.47, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.39, alongside a 14.8% increase in revenue year-over-year to $657.86 million.
• The company has authorized a share buyback program to repurchase 40 million shares, indicating management's belief that the stock may be undervalued.

Vestcor Inc trimmed its position in shares of Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX - Free Report) by 46.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,391 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 12,335 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc's holdings in Gentex were worth $335,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GNTX. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Gentex in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $24,479,000. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of Gentex by 16.0% in the fourth quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 4,438,938 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $127,531,000 after purchasing an additional 611,635 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Gentex in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $15,802,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Gentex by 29.9% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,236,718 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $64,261,000 after purchasing an additional 514,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Gentex by 888.7% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 569,608 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $16,365,000 after acquiring an additional 511,997 shares during the period. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. B. Riley increased their price objective on Gentex from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $25.00 price objective on Gentex in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Gentex from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Gentex in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on Gentex from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Gentex currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.63.

Gentex Trading Down 0.4%

GNTX traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $26.56. 903,152 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,342,465. The firm's fifty day moving average is $23.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.48. Gentex Corporation has a 1-year low of $20.28 and a 1-year high of $31.75. The company has a market cap of $5.97 billion, a PE ratio of 15.00 and a beta of 0.82.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The auto parts company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.08. Gentex had a return on equity of 16.86% and a net margin of 16.82%. The company had revenue of $657.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $591.94 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.37 EPS. Gentex's revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Gentex Corporation will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Gentex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 9th were paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 9th. Gentex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.12%.

Gentex declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, July 16th that permits the company to buyback 40,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the auto parts company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Gentex

In related news, Director Joseph B. Anderson, Jr. sold 3,764 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.87, for a total transaction of $86,082.68. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,939 shares in the company, valued at $135,824.93. This trade represents a 38.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Gentex

Gentex Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and supplies digital vision, connected car, dimmable glass, and fire protection products in the United States, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Republic of Korea, and internationally. It operates through Automotive Products and Other segments. The company offers automotive products, including interior and exterior electrochromic automatic-dimming rearview mirrors, automotive electronics, and non-automatic-dimming rearview mirrors for automotive passenger cars, light trucks, pick-up trucks, sport utility vehicles, and vans for original equipment manufacturers, automotive suppliers, and various aftermarket and accessory customers.