Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI Decreases Position in Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX)

Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI lessened its position in shares of Gentex Co. (NASDAQ:GNTX) by 10.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,799 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 1,106 shares during the quarter. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI’s holdings in Gentex were worth $282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Gentex during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gentex during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in shares of Gentex by 32.5% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,419 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 593 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Gentex during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $125,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Gentex by 159.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,133 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $147,000 after buying an additional 3,152 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.76% of the company’s stock.

Gentex Stock Up 1.2 %

NASDAQ:GNTX opened at $25.39 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.90. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $26.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.72. Gentex Co. has a fifty-two week low of $23.63 and a fifty-two week high of $36.75.

Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The auto parts company reported $0.39 earnings per share 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 period in the previous year, the business earned $0.50 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Gentex Co. will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gentex Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Gentex’s payout ratio is currently 27.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GNTX has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $31.00 price target on Gentex in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Gentex from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of Gentex from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. B. Riley reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $32.50 price target (down from $37.00) on shares of Gentex in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Gentex from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.31.

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.