Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. Buys 1,542 Shares of Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW)

Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 105,940 shares of the electronics maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,542 shares during the period. Corning accounts for about 1.2% of Benedict Financial Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Benedict Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Corning were worth $5,034,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in Corning by 76.7% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 523 shares of the electronics maker’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its stake in shares of Corning by 202.4% during the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 747 shares of the electronics maker’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Corning in the third quarter valued at about $39,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Corning in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in Corning during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. 69.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Eric S. Musser sold 30,000 shares of Corning stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total value 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 $7,940,852.48. This trade represents a 16.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP John P. Bayne, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of Corning stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.39, for a total value of $241,950.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $324,213. The trade was a 42.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 46,085 shares of company stock valued at $2,345,436. 0.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GLW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Corning from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Corning from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $58.00 price target (up previously from $51.00) on shares of Corning in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. HSBC upgraded Corning from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $51.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Corning from $39.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Corning currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.00.

Corning Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSE GLW opened at $52.99 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 91.36, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.03. Corning Incorporated has a 52 week low of $30.72 and a 52 week high of $55.33. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $49.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $45.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.62.

Corning (NYSE:GLW) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The electronics maker reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Corning Incorporated will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Corning

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.