Stephens Inc. AR Boosts Holdings in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

Stephens Inc. AR grew its position in shares of Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) by 8.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,191 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,263 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Corning were worth $769,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Corning by 76.7% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 523 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its stake in shares of Corning by 202.4% during the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 747 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Corning during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in shares of Corning during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Corning during the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on GLW. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $58.00 price target (up previously from $51.00) on shares of Corning in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Corning from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Corning from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com upgraded Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Corning from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Corning currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $53.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total value of $1,557,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 152,944 shares in the company, valued at $7,940,852.48. This trade represents a 16.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP John P. Bayne, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.39, for a total value of $241,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $324,213. This represents a 42.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 46,085 shares of company stock worth $2,345,436. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Corning Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of GLW stock opened at $52.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $44.52 billion, a PE ratio of 89.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Corning Incorporated has a 12 month low of $30.72 and a 12 month high of $55.33. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $49.41 and a 200-day moving average of $46.15.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.01. Corning had a return on equity of 15.10% and a net margin of 3.86%. On average, equities analysts predict that Corning Incorporated will post 2.33 EPS for the current year.

Corning Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. Corning’s dividend payout ratio is currently 193.11%.

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.