Sandy Spring Bank Lowers Stock Position in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

Sandy Spring Bank trimmed its holdings in shares of Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,133 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 714 shares during the period. Sandy Spring Bank’s holdings in Corning were worth $1,289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in Corning by 76.7% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 523 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Corning in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Corning in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its holdings in Corning by 202.4% during the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 747 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Corning during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. 69.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Corning

In related news, SVP Michael Alan Bell sold 2,209 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.87, for a total transaction of $110,162.83. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 152,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,940,852.48. This represents a 16.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GLW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Corning from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Corning from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. HSBC upgraded shares of Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $51.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Corning from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Corning from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.31.

Corning Stock Performance

Corning stock opened at $48.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Corning Incorporated has a 12 month low of $30.72 and a 12 month high of $55.33. The company has a market cap of $41.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 83.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.03. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $49.88 and its 200-day moving average is $47.63.

Corning (NYSE:GLW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.01. Corning had a net margin of 3.86% and a return on equity of 15.10%. Equities analysts anticipate that Corning Incorporated will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Corning Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. Corning’s dividend payout ratio is currently 193.10%.

Corning Company 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.