Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Takes $382,000 Position in Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board purchased a new position in Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 13,288 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $382,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Gentex by 162.4% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,249,230 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $150,810,000 after buying an additional 3,248,434 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Gentex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,959,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Gentex by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,023,056 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $517,802,000 after buying an additional 1,038,912 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Gentex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $24,479,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Gentex by 66.9% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,657,397 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $47,617,000 after buying an additional 664,389 shares during the last quarter. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on GNTX. UBS Group cut their price objective on Gentex from $29.00 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating and set a $32.50 price target (down from $37.00) on shares of Gentex in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $25.00 price objective (down previously from $31.00) on shares of Gentex in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Baird R W cut Gentex from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Guggenheim lowered their price objective on Gentex from $30.00 to $24.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $28.31.

Gentex Stock Up 0.6 %

NASDAQ:GNTX traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $21.88. 519,338 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,695,324. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $23.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.02. Gentex Co. has a one year low of $20.28 and a one year high of $35.33. The firm has a market cap of $4.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.84.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The auto parts company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.10). Gentex had a net margin of 17.49% and a return on equity of 16.74%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.50 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Gentex Co. will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

Gentex Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Gentex's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.27%.

Gentex 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.