Gentex Q1 Earnings Top Estimates, Eyes Margin Recovery - Gentex (NASDAQ:GNTX)

Gentex Corp GNTX reported first-quarter FY23 sales growth of 18% year-on-year to $550.76 million, beating the consensus of $529.56 million.
EPS of $0.42 (+13.5% Y/Y) beat the analyst consensus of $0.37.
For the first quarter of 2023, global light vehicle production in North America, Europe, Japan/Korea, and China increased by approximately 6%, boosting quarterly performance.
Automotive net sales improved 17% to $537.4 million. Auto-dimming mirror unit shipments rose 16%.
The gross profit margin of 31.7% contracted 260 basis points Y/Y, impacted by raw material cost increases and labor cost increases. The company targets a margin profile of 35% - 36% by the end of 2024.
Net income increased 11% to $97.6 million. The increase in net income resulted primarily from higher net sales and operating profits.
Operating expenses increased by 8% Y/Y to $61.5 million.
"While light vehicle production is still below pre-pandemic levels, demand for the Company's products resulted in a 12% outperformance versus the underlying market," said President and CEO, Steve Downing. "Our operating expenses for the first quarter of 2023 are slightly below our forecasted range for the full year, but we plan for those expenses to ramp up throughout 2023 in support of our product development strategy, new business awards, VA/VE initiatives, and our expected growth rate in 2023 and 2024."
The company held $245 million in cash and equivalents as of March 2023.
Outlook: Gentex reiterated its FY23 guidance. The company expects revenue of about $2.2 billion (consensus $2.18 billion). It still expects FY23 gross margin of 32% - 33%.
GNTX still expects calendar year 2024 revenue growth of approximately 10% above the 2023 revenue guidance.
Price Action: GNTX shares are trading higher by 5.1% at $27.69 on the last check Friday.

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