Franklin Resources Inc. Grows Holdings in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW - Free Report) by 48.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 191,648 shares of the electronics maker's stock after acquiring an additional 62,514 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings in Corning were worth $8,975,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. City Holding Co. increased its holdings in shares of Corning by 545.5% in the 3rd quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 710 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Corning in the third quarter worth about $39,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Corning in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Corning by 2,250.0% during the third quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 940 shares of the electronics maker's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Corning by 90.8% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 994 shares of the electronics maker's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 473 shares during the last quarter. 69.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Corning news, SVP John P. Bayne, Jr. sold 8,876 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.09, for a total value of $435,722.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP John P. Bayne, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.39, for a total transaction of $241,950.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $324,213. This represents a 42.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Corning Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of GLW traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $47.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,288,612 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,559,285. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 278.29, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.03. The company's 50-day moving average is $47.75 and its 200-day moving average is $43.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Corning Incorporated has a 52-week low of $29.71 and a 52-week high of $51.03.

Corning (NYSE:GLW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.72 billion. Corning had a return on equity of 13.45% and a net margin of 1.24%. The business's revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.45 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Corning Incorporated will post 1.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Corning Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Corning's payout ratio is 658.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on GLW. UBS Group increased their price target on Corning from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Corning from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com cut shares of Corning from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of Corning from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their target price on Corning from $46.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Corning currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.77.

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.