Royce & Associates LP Raises Position in Gentex Corporation $GNTX

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP boosted its Gentex stake by 70.9% in the fourth quarter, ending with 179,338 shares worth about $4.17 million. Institutional investors now own 86.76% of the auto parts company.
• Gentex reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting earnings of $0.48 per share on revenue of $675.44 million, both above analyst estimates. Revenue rose 17.1% year over year.
• Analysts remain mostly cautious on the stock, with a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $26.83. Gentex also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.12 per share, or $0.48 annually, for a 2.0% yield.

Royce & Associates LP increased its holdings in Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX - Free Report) by 70.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 179,338 shares of the auto parts company's stock after buying an additional 74,380 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned 0.08% of Gentex worth $4,173,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Gentex by 10.3% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,828,120 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $419,636,000 after buying an additional 1,383,203 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Gentex by 1.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,439,333 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $163,591,000 after buying an additional 74,779 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Gentex by 2.0% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,742,293 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $190,807,000 after buying an additional 131,035 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Gentex by 21.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,725,426 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $190,330,000 after buying an additional 1,206,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Gentex by 2.1% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,912,491 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $167,299,000 after buying an additional 123,731 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.76% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Gentex from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $29.00 price objective (up from $28.00) on shares of Gentex in a report on Monday, April 27th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Gentex from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. UBS Group set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Gentex in a report on Sunday, April 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Gentex from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, March 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $26.83.

Gentex Stock Up 0.3%

Gentex stock opened at $24.16 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.14 billion, a PE ratio of 13.57 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.09. Gentex Corporation has a twelve month low of $20.48 and a twelve month high of $29.38.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $675.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $649.42 million. Gentex had a net margin of 14.75% and a return on equity of 16.27%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.42 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Gentex Corporation will post 1.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 8th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Gentex's payout ratio is presently 26.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gentex

In other Gentex news, Director Brian C. Walker sold 5,939 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.98, for a total value of $136,478.22. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 24,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,230.90. The trade was a 19.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph B. Anderson, Jr. sold 5,939 shares of the business'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. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 16,693 shares of company stock worth $385,194. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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).

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