StockNews.com Downgrades Corning (NYSE:GLW) to Hold

Corning (NYSE:GLW) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. HSBC upgraded Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $51.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Corning from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Corning from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Corning from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $58.00 price target (up from $51.00) on shares of Corning in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Corning currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.00.

Corning Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of GLW opened at $49.99 on Tuesday. Corning has a 52-week low of $30.72 and a 52-week high of $55.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.01. The company has a market capitalization of $42.82 billion, a PE ratio of 86.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.03.

Corning (NYSE:GLW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.01. Corning had a net margin of 3.86% and a return on equity of 15.10%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Corning will post 2.33 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total value of $1,557,600.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 152,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,940,852.48. This trade represents a 16.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Michael Alan Bell sold 2,209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.87, for a total transaction of $110,162.83. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GLW. Northstar Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in Corning by 258.4% in the 4th quarter. Northstar Advisory Group LLC now owns 123,808 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $5,883,000 after buying an additional 89,268 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Corning by 48.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 191,648 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $8,975,000 after buying an additional 62,514 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Corning by 52.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,723,044 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $168,095,000 after buying an additional 1,285,836 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Corning by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 111,448 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $5,296,000 after buying an additional 16,001 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Bank Trust Division grew its stake in Corning by 27.5% in the 4th quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 138,153 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $6,565,000 after acquiring an additional 29,790 shares during the last quarter. 69.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Corning Company Profile

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.