Corning (NYSE:GLW) Raised to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Corning has been upgraded from a "buy" to a "strong-buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, reflecting increasing analyst confidence in the stock.
• The average target price for Corning shares is currently $63.25, with a mix of ratings from analysts indicating a positive outlook for the company.
• Corning reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.60, surpassing expectations and showing an increase from $0.47 EPS in the same quarter last year.

Corning (NYSE:GLW - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $56.00 target price on shares of Corning and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays increased their target price on Corning from $52.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Corning from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. UBS Group upped their price target on Corning from $54.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on Corning in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.25.

Corning Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GLW opened at $62.03 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $52.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company has a market cap of $53.13 billion, a PE ratio of 65.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.08. Corning has a 12 month low of $37.18 and a 12 month high of $63.91.

Corning (NYSE:GLW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.84 billion. Corning had a return on equity of 17.27% and a net margin of 5.77%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.47 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Corning will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Stefan Becker sold 17,106 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.68, for a total transaction of $849,826.08. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 16,117 shares in the company, valued at $800,692.56. This trade represents a 51.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Soumya Seetharam sold 14,313 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.01, for a total value of $715,793.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 31,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,575,565.05. This trade represents a 31.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 137,381 shares of company stock worth $7,836,789 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Corning

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Corning by 46.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,705 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $319,000 after purchasing an additional 2,114 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Corning by 22.8% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 235,351 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $11,184,000 after buying an additional 43,703 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in Corning by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 25,572 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $1,215,000 after buying an additional 1,485 shares during the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Corning in the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,204,000. Finally, KCM Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Corning by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 43,151 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $2,051,000 after acquiring an additional 3,899 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.80% of the company's stock.

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.

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