Renaissance Technologies LLC Decreases Holdings in Gentex Corporation $GNTX

Key Points

• Renaissance Technologies cut its Gentex stake by 12.6% in the first quarter, selling 217,800 shares and retaining 1.51 million shares worth approximately $33.0 million. Institutional investors collectively own 86.76% of Gentex.
• Gentex reported quarterly EPS of $0.58, beating estimates by $0.08, while revenue fell 1.0% year over year to $651.3 million, below expectations. The company also maintains a $0.12 quarterly dividend, implying a 2.0% yield.
• Analysts have a consensus “Hold” rating with a $27.00 target price, compared with the stock’s reported price of $24.05. Recent insider activity was negative, with directors selling a combined 16,693 shares over 90 days.

Renaissance Technologies LLC decreased its position in Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX - Free Report) by 12.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,509,752 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 217,800 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 0.71% of Gentex worth $32,988,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of GNTX. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gentex during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Gentex by 2,420.7% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,067 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,985 shares during the last quarter. Arax Advisory Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Gentex in the 4th quarter valued at $52,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in shares of Gentex by 2,299.0% in the 1st quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 2,399 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 2,299 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in shares of Gentex during the 4th quarter valued at $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.76% of the company's stock.

Gentex Stock Up 4.9%

NASDAQ:GNTX opened at $24.05 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $24.52 and a 200 day moving average of $23.51. Gentex Corporation has a 52 week low of $20.48 and a 52 week high of $29.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 0.78.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $651.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $669.65 million. Gentex had a net margin of 15.50% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.43 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Gentex Corporation will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th were issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 8th. Gentex's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on GNTX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Gentex from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Gentex from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Gentex from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $25.00 price objective (down from $26.00) on shares of Gentex in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, B. Riley Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $29.00 price objective (up from $28.00) on shares of Gentex in a report on Monday, April 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gentex presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $27.00.

Insider Transactions at Gentex

In related news, Director Richard O. Schaum sold 4,815 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.31, for a total transaction of $112,237.65. Following the transaction, the director owned 81,443 shares in the company, valued at $1,898,436.33. The trade was a 5.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Brian C. Walker sold 5,939 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.98, for a total value of $136,478.22. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,205 shares of the company's stock, valued at $556,230.90. The trade was a 19.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 16,693 shares of company stock worth $385,194. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Gentex Company Profile

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).

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