Schwerin Boyle Capital Management Inc. Raises Stock Position in Gentex Corporation $GNTX

Key Points

• Schwerin Boyle Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Gentex Corporation by 21.3%, owning 519,218 shares valued at approximately $12.10 million as of its most recent SEC filing.
• Gentex reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.47, surpassing analysts' expectations and marking a 14.8% revenue increase compared to the same quarter last year.
• The company announced a stock buyback plan to repurchase up to 40 million outstanding shares, indicating management's belief that its stock is currently undervalued.

Schwerin Boyle Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX - Free Report) by 21.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 519,218 shares of the auto parts company's stock after acquiring an additional 91,218 shares during the quarter. Gentex accounts for about 1.2% of Schwerin Boyle Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Schwerin Boyle Capital Management Inc. owned 0.23% of Gentex worth $12,098,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Gentex by 4.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,581,938 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $526,159,000 after acquiring an additional 886,785 shares during the period. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Gentex by 40.1% during the first quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 7,728,209 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $180,067,000 after purchasing an additional 2,211,392 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Gentex by 46.2% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,673,701 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $178,797,000 after purchasing an additional 2,424,471 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Gentex by 3.6% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,655,948 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $108,482,000 after purchasing an additional 160,432 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Gentex by 148.5% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,119,232 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $95,978,000 after purchasing an additional 2,461,835 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.76% of the company's stock.

Gentex Stock Down 1.0%

NASDAQ GNTX traded down $0.28 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $28.15. 1,484,110 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,010,611. The company has a market cap of $6.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.90 and a beta of 0.82. Gentex Corporation has a 12-month low of $20.28 and a 12-month high of $31.72. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $25.03 and a 200 day moving average of $23.56.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.08. The firm 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 period in the prior year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. Gentex has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Gentex Corporation will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Gentex declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase 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 repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Gentex Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on GNTX. Industrial Alliance Securities set a $25.00 target price on shares of Gentex in a research note on Friday, July 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Gentex in a report on Friday, July 11th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Gentex from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Gentex from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Gentex from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $28.63.

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.