Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Has $30.47 Million Stock Position in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

Key Points

• Commonwealth Equity Services LLC reduced its stake in Corning Incorporated by 3.3%, now holding 665,510 shares valued at approximately $30.47 million.
• Multiple analysts have upgraded Corning's stock ratings, with Oppenheimer raising the price target to $72.00, reflecting strong confidence in the company's outlook.
• Corning announced a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, with a dividend yield of 1.8%, despite a high payout ratio of 119.15%.

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC decreased its position in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW - Free Report) by 3.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 665,510 shares of the electronics maker's stock after selling 22,627 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Corning worth $30,467,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Raiffeisen Bank International AG bought a new position in Corning in the 1st quarter worth about $3,118,000. Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in Corning by 15.6% in the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 303,417 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $13,890,000 after purchasing an additional 40,904 shares during the last quarter. Argent Trust Co grew its position in Corning by 16.7% in the 1st quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 22,322 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $1,022,000 after purchasing an additional 3,188 shares during the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its position in Corning by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 74,921 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $3,430,000 after purchasing an additional 4,594 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new position in Corning in the 1st quarter worth about $228,000. Institutional investors own 69.80% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on GLW. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Corning from $52.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Corning from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Corning from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $56.00 target price on shares of Corning and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $72.00 target price (up from $55.00) on shares of Corning in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Three equities research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Corning presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.17.

Corning Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:GLW traded up $1.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $65.84. The stock had a trading volume of 4,372,071 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,910,031. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.50. The company has a market cap of $56.40 billion, a PE ratio of 28.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.08. Corning Incorporated has a 12-month low of $37.31 and a 12-month high of $66.50. The company's 50 day moving average is $54.21 and its 200-day moving average is $49.68.

Corning (NYSE:GLW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.84 billion. Corning had a net margin of 5.77% and a return on equity of 17.27%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.47 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Corning Incorporated will post 2.33 EPS for the current year.

Corning Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Corning's dividend payout ratio is 119.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Corning news, CFO Edward A. Schlesinger sold 14,082 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.28, for a total value of $877,026.96. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 78,316 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,877,520.48. This represents a 15.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Michael Paul O'day sold 14,879 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.36, for a total transaction of $927,854.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 35,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,228,933.48. This represents a 29.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 137,381 shares of company stock worth $7,836,789 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Corning 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.