Groupe la Francaise Lowers Holdings in Corning Incorporated $GLW

Key Points

• Groupe la Francaise cut its Corning stake by 43.2% in the second quarter, selling 22,793 shares and retaining 29,940 shares valued at approximately $7.65 million. Institutional investors collectively own 69.8% of Corning.
• Corning reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.78 and revenue of $4.74 billion, up 17.1% year over year. The company guided for third-quarter EPS of $0.85–$0.89 and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share.
• Shares recently traded at $154.22, while analyst sentiment remained moderately positive with a consensus price target of $174.08. However, several firms downgraded the stock or reduced their price targets, and company insiders—including the CEO—recently sold shares.

Groupe la Francaise reduced its position in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW - Free Report) by 43.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 29,940 shares of the electronics maker's stock after selling 22,793 shares during the quarter. Groupe la Francaise's holdings in Corning were worth $7,645,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Security National Bank lifted its stake in shares of Corning by 340.4% in the fourth quarter. Security National Bank now owns 72,523 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $6,350,000 after purchasing an additional 56,056 shares during the period. Herbst Group LLC acquired a new position in Corning during the second quarter worth about $4,474,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Corning by 1.2% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 893,451 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $121,483,000 after buying an additional 10,591 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Corning by 36.2% in the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 92,425 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $12,567,000 after buying an additional 24,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Corning by 137.8% during the 1st quarter. Atlas Wealth LLC now owns 12,076 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $1,642,000 after acquiring an additional 6,998 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.80% of the company's stock.

Corning Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of GLW stock opened at $154.22 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $164.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $165.39. Corning Incorporated has a twelve month low of $70.06 and a twelve month high of $271.78. The company has a market capitalization of $132.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 70.42, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Corning (NYSE:GLW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The electronics maker reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.63 billion. Corning had a net margin of 11.20% and a return on equity of 20.09%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. Corning has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.850-0.890 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Corning Incorporated will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Corning Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Corning's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Corning from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $196.00 price objective on shares of Corning in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Barclays decreased their target price on Corning from $180.00 to $129.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Corning from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Corning from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $174.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Wendell Weeks sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $186.46, for a total transaction of $18,646,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 908,353 shares in the company, valued at $169,371,500.38. This trade represents a 9.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Lewis A. Steverson sold 13,100 shares of Corning stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.29, for a total value of $1,981,899.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 15,052 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,277,217.08. This represents a 46.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Corning

Corning Incorporated is a global manufacturer specializing in specialty glass, ceramics and related materials and technologies. Headquartered in Corning, New York, the company supplies engineered materials and components used across multiple industries, including consumer electronics, telecommunications, automotive emissions control, pharmaceutical and life sciences, and industrial and scientific applications. Corning emphasizes materials science and precision manufacturing to develop durable, high-performance glass and ceramic products.

Key product lines include specialty display glass used by television and mobile-device manufacturers, cover glass marketed under well-known trade names for smartphones and tablets, and optical fiber and cable and related hardware for telecommunications networks.

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