Should You Think About Buying Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX) Now?

Gentex Corporation (NASDAQ:GNTX), is not the largest company out there, but it received a lot of attention from a substantial price movement on the NASDAQGS over the last few months, increasing to US$34.17 at one point, and dropping to the lows of US$28.13. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether Gentex's current trading price of US$30.59 reflective of the actual value of the mid-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at Gentex’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

View our latest analysis for Gentex

What Is Gentex Worth?

According to my price multiple model, where I compare the company's price-to-earnings ratio to the industry average, the stock currently looks expensive. I’ve used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because there’s not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stock’s ratio of 18.22x is currently well-above the industry average of 15.05x, meaning that it is trading at a more expensive price relative to its peers. Another thing to keep in mind is that Gentex’s share price is quite stable relative to the rest of the market, as indicated by its low beta. This means that if you believe the current share price should move towards the levels of its industry peers over time, a low beta could suggest it is not likely to reach that level anytime soon, and once it’s there, it may be hard for it to fall back down into an attractive buying range again.

What kind of growth will Gentex generate?

Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so let’s also take a look at the company's future expectations. With profit expected to grow by 56% over the next couple of years, the future seems bright for Gentex. It looks like higher cash flow is on the cards for the stock, which should feed into a higher share valuation.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? It seems like the market has well and truly priced in GNTX’s positive outlook, with shares trading above industry price multiples. However, this brings up another question – is now the right time to sell? If you believe GNTX should trade below its current price, selling high and buying it back up again when its price falls towards the industry PE ratio can be profitable. But before you make this decision, take a look at whether its fundamentals have changed.

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on GNTX for a while, now may not be the best time to enter into the stock. The price has surpassed its industry peers, which means it is likely that there is no more upside from mispricing. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for GNTX, which means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

Since timing is quite important when it comes to individual stock picking, it's worth taking a look at what those latest analysts forecasts are. So feel free to check out our free graph representing analyst forecasts.

If you are no longer interested in Gentex, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.