Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) Shares Purchased by Townsquare Capital LLC

Key Points

• Townsquare Capital LLC has increased its stake in Corning Incorporated by 8.2%, owning 181,040 shares valued at approximately $8.29 million as of the latest report.
• Several large investors have also increased their positions in Corning, with institutional ownership now at 69.80%, indicating strong interest from the investment community.
• Corning recently reported earnings of $0.60 EPS, exceeding analysts' expectations, and is set to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share on September 29th.

Townsquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW - Free Report) by 8.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 181,040 shares of the electronics maker's stock after buying an additional 13,747 shares during the quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in Corning were worth $8,288,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. grew its position in Corning by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. now owns 2,422 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Seeds Investor LLC boosted its position in shares of Corning by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Seeds Investor LLC now owns 7,708 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $366,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its position in Corning by 2.4% during the first quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 9,489 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $434,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC lifted its position in Corning by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 10,182 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $484,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Old North State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Corning by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Old North State Wealth Management LLC now owns 40,107 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $1,836,000 after buying an additional 239 shares in the last quarter. 69.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Corning

In other Corning news, CEO Wendell P. Weeks sold 82,103 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.19, for a total transaction of $5,352,294.57. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 809,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at $52,757,941.05. This trade represents a 9.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael Paul O'day sold 14,879 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.36, for a total value of $927,854.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 35,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,228,933.48. This trade represents a 29.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 211,484 shares of company stock valued at $12,813,804. 0.32% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on GLW shares. Susquehanna reissued a "positive" rating and set a $75.00 price objective (up from $60.00) on shares of Corning in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Corning from $57.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Barclays upped their price target on Corning from $52.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Corning from $63.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $56.00 price objective on Corning and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Three 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Corning presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $65.17.

Corning Trading Down 1.2%

GLW stock traded down $0.77 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $65.00. The company had a trading volume of 5,692,860 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,923,841. The stock has a market cap of $55.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.23, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.08. Corning Incorporated has a 52 week low of $37.31 and a 52 week high of $66.50. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $54.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

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

Corning Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid 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 (DPR) is presently 119.15%.

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.