UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp Reduces Holdings in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp reduced its stake in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,389 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after selling 1,454 shares during the quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp’s holdings in Corning were worth $874,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Corning by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 27,127 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $1,289,000 after buying an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. FineMark National Bank & Trust raised its stake in Corning by 23.8% in the 4th quarter. FineMark National Bank & Trust now owns 17,507 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $832,000 after acquiring an additional 3,369 shares during the last quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Corning in the 4th quarter worth $211,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Corning during the 4th quarter worth about $414,000. Finally, Minneapolis Portfolio Management Group LLC grew its stake in Corning by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Minneapolis Portfolio Management Group LLC now owns 918,919 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $43,667,000 after purchasing an additional 3,186 shares during the last quarter. 69.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Corning Stock Performance

NYSE GLW opened at $47.07 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Corning Incorporated has a twelve month low of $30.72 and a twelve month high of $55.33. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $49.97 and a 200 day moving average of $47.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.15, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.03.

Corning (NYSE:GLW) last announced 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Corning Incorporated will post 2.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Corning Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Corning’s dividend payout ratio is currently 193.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on GLW. Citigroup lifted their target price on Corning from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com cut shares of Corning from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Corning from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. HSBC raised shares of Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $51.00 to $60.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Corning from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $54.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Michael Alan Bell sold 2,209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of the business’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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 152,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,940,852.48. This represents a 16.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

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.