Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Stock Position in Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in shares of Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 51,523 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,221 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Gentex were worth $1,683,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC increased its position in Gentex by 123.6% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,203 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 665 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Gentex by 371.3% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,738 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 2,157 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its stake in shares of Gentex by 283.3% during the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 3,066 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 2,266 shares during the last quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gentex during the third quarter worth about $119,000. Finally, Lavaca Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Gentex in the third quarter valued at approximately $206,000. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Kevin C. Nash sold 13,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.04, for a total transaction of $446,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 44,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,464,365.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Kevin C. Nash sold 13,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.04, for a total transaction of $446,040.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 44,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,464,365.84. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Richard O. Schaum sold 6,022 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.93, for a total value of $204,326.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 62,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,122,491.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GNTX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Gentex from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Gentex from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. StockNews.com raised Gentex from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Gentex from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, B. Riley increased their price objective on shares of Gentex from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gentex currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.83.

Gentex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GNTX opened at $35.16 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $35.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.13 billion, a PE ratio of 19.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.99. Gentex Co. has a 12 month low of $25.85 and a 12 month high of $37.58.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The auto parts company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.06. Gentex had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 18.63%. The business had revenue of $589.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $563.42 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.37 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Gentex Co. will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th were given a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 4th. Gentex’s payout ratio is currently 26.09%.

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.