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

Napatree Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,488 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after buying an additional 536 shares during the quarter. Napatree Capital LLC’s holdings in Corning were worth $356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Corning by 76.7% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 523 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Corning during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Corning in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its holdings in shares of Corning by 202.4% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Corning during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. 69.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Corning Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GLW opened at $48.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $41.53 billion, a PE ratio of 83.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $49.91 and its 200-day moving average is $47.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.62. Corning Incorporated has a 52 week low of $30.72 and a 52 week high of $55.33.

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

Corning Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Corning’s payout ratio is 193.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total transaction of $1,557,600.00. Following the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael Alan Bell sold 2,209 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.87, for a total transaction of $110,162.83. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.45% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GLW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Corning from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com lowered Corning from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Corning from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Corning from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Corning from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.31.

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.