22 April 1999: US-based Gentex Corp., a producer of automatic-dimming rearview mirrors and commercial fire protection products, reported record first-quarter profits, and forecast more strong results …
22 April 1999: US-based Gentex Corp., a producer of automatic-dimming rearview mirrors and commercial fire protection products, reported record first-quarter profits, and forecast more strong results for the rest of the year. Gentex earned US$ 16.7 million, or US$ 0.22 per diluted share in the first quarter of 1999, up 34% from US$ 12.5 million, or US$ 0.17 a diluted share a year earlier. Revenues rose 15% to US$ 65.6 million from US$ 57.0 million. The earnings per share were US$ 0.01 above the analysts“ consensus estimate, according to First Call Corp. “We“re looking for another good year in 1999,” Kenneth La Grand, Gentex“s executive vice president, said in a statement. “And we have increased our R&D (research and development) investment to ensure the success of a number of potential new mirror programmes with sophisticated electronic features that could significantly add to our sales volume within the next twelve months,” he said. La Grand estimated that automotive unit shipments in calendar 1999 could increase by 20-25% to roughly six million units, compared with the 4.9 million units the company shipped in 1998. In the recently completed first quarter, the company shipped a total of 1.49 million automotive mirrors, up from 1.27 million in the same quarter in 1998.