Short Interest in Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX) Rises By 13.7%

Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,150,000 shares, an increase of 13.7% from the May 31st total of 4,530,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,350,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.8 days. Currently, 2.2% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on GNTX shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Gentex from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 16th. B. Riley boosted their price objective on Gentex from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Guggenheim increased 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $37.83.

Gentex Stock Up 0.4 %

GNTX stock traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $33.94. 242,211 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,400,691. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $34.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.95, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.93. Gentex has a 12-month low of $27.86 and a 12-month high of $37.58.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The auto parts company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $590.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $600.38 million. Gentex had a return on equity of 19.19% and a net margin of 18.77%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.42 EPS. Research analysts predict that Gentex will post 2.11 EPS for the current year.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 17th. Investors of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. Gentex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gentex news, Director Joseph B. Anderson, Jr. sold 4,716 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.46, for a total value of $162,513.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $129,707.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Gentex

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Hawaiian Bank purchased a new stake in Gentex during the second quarter worth about $218,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gentex by 46.4% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,551 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 809 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in Gentex by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,706,411 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $206,095,000 after buying an additional 230,873 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in Gentex by 91.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 127,876 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $4,619,000 after buying an additional 60,934 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Gentex in the first quarter worth $93,000. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.