Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX) Shares Sold by Wedge Capital Management L L P NC

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC trimmed its holdings in shares of Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 378,854 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 11,148 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned 0.16% of Gentex worth $12,373,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CWM LLC boosted its position in Gentex by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 10,697 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $348,000 after buying an additional 1,409 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Gentex by 149.7% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 60,315 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,963,000 after acquiring an additional 36,159 shares during the period. Naples Global Advisors LLC raised its stake in Gentex by 8.5% during the third quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 17,932 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $584,000 after acquiring an additional 1,400 shares during the period. Financial Enhancement Group LLC acquired a new stake in Gentex during the third quarter worth about $3,690,000. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Gentex by 0.6% during the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 170,996 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $5,308,000 after acquiring an additional 1,056 shares during the period. 86.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gentex Price Performance

Gentex stock traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $34.35. The stock had a trading volume of 66,141 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,401,473. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.02. Gentex Co. has a twelve month low of $25.85 and a twelve month high of $37.58. The firm has a market cap of $7.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.61, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.99.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last released 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 net margin of 18.63% and a return on equity of 19.25%. The company had revenue of $589.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $563.42 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.37 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 19.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Gentex Co. will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th were given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. Gentex’s payout ratio is 26.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on GNTX shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Gentex from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Guggenheim raised their price target 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. B. Riley raised their price target on shares of Gentex from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Gentex from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Gentex from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.83.

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.