Confluence Wealth Services Inc. Takes $177,000 Position in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

Confluence Wealth Services Inc. bought a new stake in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 3,723 shares of the electronics maker’s stock, valued at approximately $177,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Northstar Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Corning by 258.4% in the 4th quarter. Northstar Advisory Group LLC now owns 123,808 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $5,883,000 after purchasing an additional 89,268 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Corning by 48.4% during the third 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 lifted its stake in Corning by 52.8% during the third 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 lifted its position in shares of Corning by 16.8% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 111,448 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $5,296,000 after acquiring an additional 16,001 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Bank Trust Division lifted its position in shares of Corning by 27.5% in 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 acquiring an additional 29,790 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Michael Alan Bell sold 2,209 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.87, for a total value of $110,162.83. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of the firm’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 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 trade represents a 16.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 46,085 shares of company stock worth $2,345,436. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Corning Price Performance

Shares of GLW opened at $53.66 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.94 billion, a PE ratio of 92.52, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.03. The company’s 50-day moving average is $49.02 and its 200-day moving average is $45.83. Corning Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $30.72 and a fifty-two week 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.

Corning (NYSE:GLW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 forecast that Corning Incorporated will post 2.33 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Corning from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. HSBC upgraded shares of Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $51.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Corning from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Corning from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus 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.