Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX) by 7.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 131,323 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 10,860 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Gentex were worth $3,773,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Gentex during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Gentex by 138.8% during the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,139 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 662 shares during the period. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Gentex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Gentex by 32.5% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,419 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 593 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Gentex during the third quarter valued at approximately $125,000. 86.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on GNTX shares. B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $32.50 price target (down from $37.00) on shares of Gentex in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Gentex from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $31.00 price target on Gentex in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Gentex from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Guggenheim set a $30.00 target price on shares of Gentex in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.81.

Gentex Price Performance

Gentex stock opened at $23.46 on Wednesday. Gentex Co. has a 1 year low of $22.87 and a 1 year high of $36.46. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $25.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.97. The stock has a market cap of $5.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.33, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.90.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The auto parts company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.10). Gentex had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 17.49%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Gentex Co. will post 2.04 EPS for the current year.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Gentex’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.27%.

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.