Scotia Capital Inc. Has $3.26 Million Stock Position in Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX)

Key Points

• Scotia Capital Inc. increased its stake in Gentex Corporation by 10.7% in Q1, owning 139,844 shares worth approximately $3.26 million.
• Gentex reported a 14.8% year-over-year revenue increase for the quarter, with earnings per share of $0.47, surpassing analysts' expectations.
• The company has initiated a stock buyback program allowing for the repurchase of up to 40 million shares, indicating management's belief that the stock is undervalued.

Scotia Capital Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX - Free Report) by 10.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 139,844 shares of the auto parts company's stock after acquiring an additional 13,519 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. owned about 0.06% of Gentex worth $3,258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased 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 worth $28,000 after buying an additional 563 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Gentex by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 54,440 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $1,268,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Gentex by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 63,700 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $1,484,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in Gentex by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 10,641 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares during the period. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its holdings in Gentex by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 101,711 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $2,922,000 after purchasing an additional 640 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Gentex

In other news, Director Joseph B. Anderson, Jr. sold 3,764 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.87, for a total value of $86,082.68. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,939 shares of the company's stock, valued at $135,824.93. This represents a 38.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.45% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Gentex Stock Performance

Shares of GNTX opened at $26.75 on Wednesday. Gentex Corporation has a 52-week low of $20.28 and a 52-week high of $31.75. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $23.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.11 and a beta of 0.82.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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. Gentex had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 16.86%. The firm had revenue of $657.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $591.94 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.37 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Gentex Corporation will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Gentex Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on GNTX shares. Guggenheim cut their price target on Gentex from $30.00 to $24.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Baird R W lowered shares of Gentex from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Gentex from $26.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. UBS Group increased their price target on Gentex from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, B. Riley boosted their price objective on Gentex from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Gentex presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus 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.

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