Cidel Asset Management Inc. Purchases 246,235 Shares of Gentex Corporation $GNTX

Cidel Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX) by 61.4% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 647,425 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 246,235 shares during the quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Gentex were worth $14,146,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Gentex by 82.3% during the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 2,042 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 922 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gentex by 2,420.7% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,067 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,985 shares in the last quarter. Arax Advisory Partners bought a new position in shares of Gentex in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $52,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its position in shares of Gentex by 2,299.0% during the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 2,399 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 2,299 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in shares of Gentex during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,000. 86.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Gentex Trading Down 3.7%

Shares of NASDAQ GNTX opened at $24.75 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.39. Gentex Corporation has a 1-year low of $20.48 and a 1-year high of $29.38. The firm has a market cap of $5.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.90 and a beta of 0.79.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.04. Gentex had a return on equity of 16.27% and a net margin of 14.75%.The firm had revenue of $675.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $649.42 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 17.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Gentex Corporation will post 1.96 EPS for the current year.

Gentex Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 8th will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 8th. Gentex’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Joseph B. Anderson, Jr. sold 5,939 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.98, for a total transaction of $136,478.22. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian C. Walker sold 5,939 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.98, for a total transaction of $136,478.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $556,230.90. This trade represents a 19.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 16,693 shares of company stock worth $385,194 over the last quarter. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on GNTX shares. Freedom Capital raised Gentex to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Gentex from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. UBS Group set a $26.00 target price on Gentex in a research note on Sunday, April 26th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Gentex in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, B. Riley Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $29.00 price target (up from $28.00) on shares of Gentex in a research report on Monday, April 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.83.

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).