Vanguard Group Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Gentex Corporation $GNTX

Key Points

• Vanguard trimmed its stake in Gentex by 0.8%, selling 165,730 shares and now holds 21,559,205 shares—about 9.85% of the company valued at roughly $501.7 million per its SEC filing.
• Gentex beat quarterly expectations, reporting $0.48 EPS vs. $0.44 expected and revenue of $675.44M (up 17.1% year‑over‑year), and the company pays a $0.12 quarterly dividend (annualized $0.48, yield ~2.1%).
• Institutional investors own 86.76% of the stock, while insiders have sold 62,948 shares (~$1.55M) in the past 90 days; analysts carry a consensus "Hold" rating with a $26.67 target.

Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its position in Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX - Free Report) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,559,205 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 165,730 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 9.85% of Gentex worth $501,683,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Gentex by 5.1% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 9,648 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 467 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Gentex by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 66,519 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $1,882,000 after purchasing an additional 487 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC raised its stake in shares of Gentex by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 13,025 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 562 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Gentex by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 30,641 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $713,000 after buying an additional 635 shares during the period. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Gentex by 2.3% in the third quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 29,248 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $828,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gentex Trading Up 1.5%

NASDAQ:GNTX opened at $22.93 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $4.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.88 and a beta of 0.78. Gentex Corporation has a twelve month low of $20.48 and a twelve month high of $29.38. The company's 50-day moving average price is $22.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.22.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.04. Gentex had a net margin of 14.75% and a return on equity of 16.27%. The company had revenue of $675.44 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $649.42 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.42 EPS. Gentex's revenue was up 17.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Gentex Corporation will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 8th were issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 8th. Gentex's payout ratio is currently 26.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on GNTX. B. Riley Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $29.00 price objective (up from $28.00) on shares of Gentex in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Gentex in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Gentex from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Freedom Capital upgraded Gentex to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Gentex from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. One equities research 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $26.67.

Insider Activity

In other Gentex news, CFO Kevin C. Nash sold 11,885 shares of Gentex stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.98, for a total transaction of $296,887.30. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,484,561.40. The trade was a 16.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CTO Neil Boehm sold 11,248 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.82, for a total transaction of $279,175.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 58,951 shares in the company, valued at $1,463,163.82. The trade was a 16.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 62,948 shares of company stock worth $1,554,550. 0.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Gentex 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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