ZEELAND — Gentex Corp. (Nasdaq: GNTX), the Zeeland-based manufacturer of automotive automatic-dimming rearview mirrors, automotive electronics, dimmable aircraft windows, and fire protection products, reported revenue of $419.9 million in the fourth quarter, up 4 percent from $405.6 million in the final quarter of 2015.
Net income for the quarter was $88.8 million or 31 cents a share, up from $88.4 million or 30 cents a share a year earlier.
For the full year, revenue was $1.68 billion, up from $1.54 billion in 2015. Net income for the full year was $347.6 million or $1.19 a year, up from $318.5 million or $1.08 a share in 2015.
The company’s revenue, net income, and unit shipments all rose 9 percent for the year.
Gentex officials said that during the fourth quarter, a raw material shortage of an unspecified commodity used in most of the company’s auto-dimming mirrors, impacted Gentex’s ability to meet full customer demand for the fourth quarter and resulted in a negative impact to unit shipments and revenue for the quarter. Also doing the quarter, plant shutdowns at automakers and inventory adjustments at some auto suppliers hurt quarterly unit shipments and revenue. The combined negative impact on revenue of these issues was approximately $15 million in the quarter.
The company also repurchased 2.3 million shares of its stock during the fourth quarter and 10.3 million shares for the year under its previously announced share repurchase plan. As of Dec. 31, the company has 6.7 million shares remaining available for repurchase in the plan. Gentex officials say they will continue to repurchase additional shares of its common stock in the future depending on macroeconomic issues, market trends and other factors.
The company also said it paid down $15 million on its revolving loan during the fourth quarter and $40 million for the year in addition to normally scheduled payments.
The company predicted 2017 revenue of $1.78 billion to $1.85 billion, and gross margin of 39 to 40 percent of sales.
To listen to a replay of the conference call discussing these results, visit http://ir.gentex.com/WebcastArchives.