Corning Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:GLW)

Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) was the target of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock investors purchased 67,678 call options on the company. This is an increase of 385% compared to the typical volume of 13,955 call options.

Corning Price Performance

GLW opened at $46.86 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $49.88 and a 200-day moving average of $47.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 80.79, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.03. Corning has a 12-month low of $30.72 and a 12-month high of $55.33. 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 (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 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Corning will post 2.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Corning Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.39%. Corning’s dividend payout ratio is 193.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Corning news, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 152,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,940,852.48. This trade represents a 16.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael Alan Bell sold 2,209 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.87, for a total value of $110,162.83. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Corning

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings 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 worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Corning during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Corning during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Corning during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Corning during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 69.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GLW has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com lowered Corning from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays cut their price objective on Corning from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Corning from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Corning from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Corning from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Four investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.