Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX) Receives $31.81 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $31.81.

GNTX has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price target on Gentex from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $31.00 price target on shares of Gentex in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim set a $30.00 price target on shares of Gentex in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Gentex from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $32.50 target price (down from $37.00) on shares of Gentex in a research report on Monday, February 3rd.

Gentex Stock Up 2.2 %

NASDAQ:GNTX opened at $24.43 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $28.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.55 billion, a PE ratio of 13.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.90. Gentex has a twelve month low of $23.50 and a twelve month high of $36.46.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The auto parts company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.10). Gentex had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 17.49%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.50 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Gentex will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gentex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. Gentex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.27%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Gentex

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Gentex by 42.7% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 21,748 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $646,000 after acquiring an additional 6,505 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of Gentex by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 392,445 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $11,651,000 after purchasing an additional 36,134 shares during the period. Commerce Bank grew its position in shares of Gentex by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 16,468 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $489,000 after acquiring an additional 2,827 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in Gentex by 155.1% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 136,020 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $4,038,000 after buying an additional 82,701 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Gentex by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,554,823 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $46,163,000 after purchasing an additional 6,106 shares during the period. 86.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.