Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys 115,443 Shares of Gentex Corporation $GNTX

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Gentex Corporation by 13.5%, owning a total of 967,465 shares valued at approximately $22.54 million at the end of the recent quarter.
• Gentex recently reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.47, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.39, along with a quarterly revenue of $657.86 million, a 14.8% increase from the previous year.
• The company has initiated a stock buyback program authorizing the repurchase of 40 million shares, indicating confidence in its stock valuation.

Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX - Free Report) by 13.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 967,465 shares of the auto parts company's stock after purchasing an additional 115,443 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.43% of Gentex worth $22,542,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in GNTX. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Gentex by 1,471.0% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,084 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 1,015 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its position in shares of Gentex by 85.4% during the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 1,222 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Gentex by 208.2% during the first quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,618 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 1,093 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Gentex by 103.3% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,124 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 1,079 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Gentex by 268,600.0% during the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 2,687 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 2,686 shares during the last quarter. 86.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gentex Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of Gentex stock traded down $0.14 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $28.01. 1,973,745 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,956,133. The company has a market cap of $6.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.82 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $25.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $23.57. Gentex Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $20.28 and a fifty-two week high of $31.72.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The auto parts company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $657.86 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $591.94 million. Gentex had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 16.86%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. Gentex has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Gentex Corporation will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gentex declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, July 16th that authorizes the company to buyback 40,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the auto parts company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Gentex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 8th will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 8th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Gentex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GNTX. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Gentex in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Zacks Research raised shares of Gentex from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Gentex from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Gentex from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Gentex from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.63.

Gentex Company Profile

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.