Gentex 3Q net income falls

ZEELAND, Mich. (AP) -- Gentex's third-quarter net income declined 4 percent, pressured by weakness in Europe and fluctuations in customer orders. The auto parts supplier's revenue performance missed analysts' estimates and its fourth-quarter revenue forecast fell short of Wall Street's view. Gentex is continuing to deal with unpredictability among customer orders, as customers keeping a close eye on their spending either reduce or postpone orders. This makes it difficult for Gentex to predict its future results. Gentex's shares dropped 65 cents, or 3.8 percent, to $16.59 in midday trading on Tuesday. Over the past year, the stock has traded between $14.38 and $32.21. For the three months ended Sept. 30, the company earned $41.9 million, or 29 cents per share, versus $43.4 million, or 30 cents per share, a year ago. This beat the 28 cents per share that analysts surveyed by FactSet expected. Revenue edged down 1 percent to $268.2 million from $269.5 million. Wall Street expected higher revenue of $277.2 million. Total auto-dimming mirror unit shipments rose 5 percent, with shipments in North America up 22 percent. Shipments to offshore automakers fell 4 percent on fewer shipments to some European and Japanese automakers. About 45 percent of the company's total mirror unit shipments were to Europe last year. Gross margin improved from the second quarter mostly because of lower purchasing costs but dropped from a year earlier because of annual customer price cuts and product mix. Gentex Corp. said Tuesday that its board approved the repurchase of up to an additional 4 million shares of its common stock. It bought back about 2 million shares in the quarter. The Zeeland, Mich.-based company has bought back 28 million shares under its existing repurchase plan. Gentex foresees approximately flat revenue of $260.3 million in the fourth quarter. Analysts expect $273.7 million. Published: Thu, Oct 25, 2012