Corning (NYSE:GLW) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $47.45 and last traded at $47.35, with a volume of 3112877 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $47.03.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on GLW shares. Barclays boosted their target price on Corning from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Corning from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. HSBC raised shares of Corning from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $37.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Corning from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Corning from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Corning has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.23.

Corning Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $43.31 and a 200-day moving average of $39.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 66.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.04.

Corning (NYSE:GLW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The electronics maker reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $3.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.55 billion. Corning had a return on equity of 12.69% and a net margin of 3.53%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Corning Incorporated will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Corning Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. Corning’s dividend payout ratio is currently 157.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Corning

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GLW. TFG Advisers LLC boosted its position in Corning by 27.2% during the 3rd quarter. TFG Advisers LLC now owns 14,618 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $660,000 after acquiring an additional 3,123 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Corning during the 3rd quarter worth $118,000. Kessler Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in Corning during the third quarter valued at about $1,022,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. grew its stake in Corning by 34.9% in the third quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 2,279 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 589 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venture Visionary Partners LLC raised its holdings in Corning by 163.9% in the third quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 27,618 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $1,247,000 after purchasing an additional 17,151 shares in the last quarter. 69.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Corning

Corning Incorporated engages in the display technologies, optical communications, environmental technologies, specialty materials, and life sciences businesses in the United States and internationally. The company's Display Technologies segment offers glass substrates for flat panel displays, including liquid crystal displays and organic light-emitting diodes that are used in televisions, notebook computers, desktop monitors, tablets, and handheld devices.