Handelsbanken Fonder AB Sells 31,112 Shares of Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB decreased its stake in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 403,497 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 31,112 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Corning were worth $19,174,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GLW. Northstar Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Corning by 258.4% during the 4th quarter. Northstar Advisory Group LLC now owns 123,808 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $5,883,000 after purchasing an additional 89,268 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Corning by 48.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 191,648 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $8,975,000 after purchasing an additional 62,514 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Corning by 52.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,723,044 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $168,095,000 after purchasing an additional 1,285,836 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Corning by 16.8% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 111,448 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $5,296,000 after purchasing an additional 16,001 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Bank Trust Division grew its holdings in shares of Corning by 27.5% during the 4th quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 138,153 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $6,565,000 after purchasing an additional 29,790 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP John P. Bayne, Jr. sold 8,876 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.09, for a total transaction of $435,722.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was 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 directly owns 152,944 shares in the company, valued at $7,940,852.48. The trade was a 16.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 41,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,103,486 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Corning Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GLW opened at $51.46 on Friday. Corning Incorporated has a 1 year low of $30.72 and a 1 year high of $55.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The company’s 50-day moving average is $49.85 and its 200 day moving average is $46.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 88.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.03.

Corning (NYSE:GLW) last announced its quarterly 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%. On average, sell-side analysts expect 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 given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Corning’s dividend payout ratio is currently 193.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on GLW. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Corning from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Corning from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Corning from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Corning from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $51.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Corning currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.00.

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.