Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $29.66, but opened at $31.00. Gentex shares last traded at $31.10, with a volume of 343,200 shares trading hands.

The auto parts company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $608.53 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $611.33 million. Gentex had a return on equity of 17.78% and a net margin of 17.87%.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th were issued a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, October 9th. Gentex’s dividend payout ratio is 26.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on GNTX. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Gentex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 4th. B. Riley decreased their target price on shares of Gentex from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Gentex from $39.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Gentex from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Gentex from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Corp Gentex acquired 3,152,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $5.00 per share, with a total value of $15,762,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 6,463,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,319,040. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Gentex

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Boston Partners raised its stake in Gentex by 4.2% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,706,411 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $206,095,000 after acquiring an additional 230,873 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Gentex by 41.2% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 4,677,655 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $168,957,000 after purchasing an additional 1,363,898 shares during the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in Gentex by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 4,343,880 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $146,432,000 after purchasing an additional 126,416 shares in the last quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN lifted its stake in Gentex by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 4,259,831 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $143,599,000 after purchasing an additional 43,457 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Gentex by 14.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,989,248 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $134,475,000 after buying an additional 489,689 shares in the last quarter. 86.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gentex Stock Up 5.4 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $29.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $32.22. The stock has a market cap of $7.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.46, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.92.

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.