Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) Stock Rating Lowered by Freedom Capital

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) was downgraded by research analysts at Freedom Capital from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Gentex from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. B. Riley Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 target price (up from $28.00) on shares of Gentex in a research note on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Gentex from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Gentex from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Gentex from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Gentex has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.00.

Gentex Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of GNTX stock opened at $23.64 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.51 and a beta of 0.78. The business’s 50 day moving average is $24.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.50. Gentex has a twelve month low of $20.48 and a twelve month high of $29.38.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $651.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $669.65 million. Gentex had a net margin of 15.50% and a return on equity of 16.78%. The business’s revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Gentex will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Brian C. Walker sold 5,939 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.98, for a total value of $136,478.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,230.90. This represents a 19.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Joseph B. Anderson, Jr. sold 5,939 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.98, for a total value of $136,478.22. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of GNTX. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Gentex by 10.3% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,828,120 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $419,636,000 after purchasing an additional 1,383,203 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of Gentex by 14,398.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 7,726,057 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $179,785,000 after buying an additional 7,672,769 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Gentex by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,463,299 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $163,067,000 after buying an additional 833,919 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Gentex by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,439,333 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $163,591,000 after buying an additional 74,779 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its holdings in Gentex by 2.1% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,912,491 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $167,299,000 after acquiring an additional 123,731 shares during the last quarter. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Gentex

Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ: GNTX) is a global technology company specializing in the design and manufacture of automotive and aerospace products. The company’s primary business centers on automatic-dimming rearview mirrors, advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), and camera-based driver monitoring technologies. In the automotive sector, Gentex supplies exterior and interior mirrors with integrated electronics, connectivity features, and safety capabilities to many of the world’s leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).