Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) Sets New 1-Year Low – Here’s Why

Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $24.27 and last traded at $24.28, with a volume of 765983 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $24.77.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on GNTX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Gentex from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and issued a $32.50 target price (down from $37.00) on shares of Gentex in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Gentex from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Guggenheim reduced their target price on Gentex from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Gentex from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gentex presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.06.

Gentex Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $5.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.91. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $27.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.08.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The auto parts company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period last year, the business earned $0.50 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Gentex Co. will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gentex Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 8th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.97%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, January 8th. Gentex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.27%.

Institutional Trading of Gentex

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Gentex by 162.4% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,249,230 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $150,810,000 after acquiring an additional 3,248,434 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Gentex in the fourth quarter valued at $51,959,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Gentex by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,023,056 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $517,802,000 after acquiring an additional 1,038,912 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Gentex during the fourth quarter worth $24,479,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Gentex by 66.9% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,657,397 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $47,617,000 after purchasing an additional 664,389 shares during the last quarter. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.