Corning - indirekt zu 25% an Hemlock beteiligt - Älteste Beiträge zuerst (Seite 9)

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Corning announces glass advancements with Gorilla Glass 4

Alex Wolfgram, DIGITIMES, Taipei [Thursday 20 November 2014]
Corning has announced its Gorilla Glass 4, which provides at least two times improved damage resistance over competitive aluminosilicate glass, as measured by retained strength after damage, resulting in improved mechanical durability of the glass to in-field damage events, such as drops, according to the company.

Corning scientists examined hundreds of broken devices and found that damage caused by sharp contact accounted for more than 70% of field failures. The scientists then developed new drop-test methods that simulate real-world break events, based on thousands of hours analyzing cover glass that had broken in the field or laboratory. The scientists used the new methods to drop devices face down from one meter, such that the cover glass directly contacted a rough surface to make new developments with Gorilla Glass 4, said Corning.

Gorilla Glass 4 is manufactured using Corning's proprietary fusion draw process. Over 40 manufacturers have designed Gorilla Glass into a total of 1,395 product models, the company added.

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Jahreszahlen kamen gestern; leider ist der Kurs schon weit vorausgelaufen

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nachgekauft

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Antwort auf Beitrag Nr.: 49.349.393 von R-BgO am 17.03.15 11:27:59

aufgestockt

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Corning announces collaboration with OLEDWorks

Press release, April 14; Alex Wolfgram, DIGITIMES [Tuesday 14 April 2015]

Corning has announced a collaborative agreement with OLEDWorks to develop flexible and conformable OLED lighting solutions using Corning Willow Glass as an integrated substrate.

These lighting panels will be used in architectural lighting and luminaries and are expected to provide two times the light output of traditional OLED lighting panels, enabling increased efficiency and lower power consumption.

A key component in these new lighting solutions is Willow Glass, a thin and flexible hermetic barrier and substrate. Willow Glass helps protect sensitive internal components from damaging moisture and oxygen while also acting as a structural material, Corning said.

"Through this strategic alliance, the team will significantly improve energy efficiency by creatively integrating Corning's light extraction technology with OLEDWorks' formulation science and inventive manufacturing processes. Using Corning Willow Glass in our near-term product roadmap expands our OLED lighting portfolio to provide highly flexible and adaptive design statements for a wider variety of lighting applications," said David DeJoy, CEO of OLEDWorks.

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Corning reports strong profit for 1Q15

Rodney Chan, DIGITIMES, Taipei [Wednesday 29 April 2015]


Corning has reported first-quarter 2015 net sales reached US$2.27 billion, down 1% on a year-over-year basis, while net income rose 35% to UST407 million.

Corning said sequential LCD glass price declines continued at moderate levels in the first quarter, and it expects prices to decline even less in the second quarter.

"We are off to an excellent start in 2015," Wendell P Weeks, chairman, CEO and president of Corning, was cited as saying in a company statement. "In the first quarter, we benefited from the company's business diversity with core sales growing in four of five segments.

"Our Optical Communications segment had a terrific quarter as demand for fiber-to-the-home solutions and data center products remained strong. In our Display Technologies segment, moderate LCD glass price declines and a relentless focus on cost reductions have helped us maintain profitability. Finally, our latest generation of Gorilla Glass is a hit with customers, and its success is helping to drive operational results."

Weeks said, "We believe we are on track for another year of core earnings growth."

Display Technologies segment core sales were US$972 million (non-GAAP), up slightly from last year's first quarter. Total LCD glass volume grew at a high-teen percentage on a year-over-year basis, Corning said.

Sales in Corning's Specialty Materials segment were US$272 million, a 4% increase from last year's first-quarter results. Gorilla Glass volume was up more than 20%, driven by increasing demand for Gorilla Glass 4 cover glass.

In the second quarter, Corning expects its LCD glass volume to increase by a low single-digit percentage sequentially.

Specialty Materials segment sales in the second quarter are expected to decrease by a mid-single digit percentage on a year-over-year basis, driven by declines in advanced optics product sales. Gorilla Glass sales are expected to remain strong.

[sirmike [Blogger]]

Barclays Reaffirms “Top Pick” Rating for Corning

(QUELLE) - Corning (NYSE:GLW)‘s stock had its “top pick” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at Barclays in a report released on Monday. They currently have a $26.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays’ price objective suggests a potential upside of 21.27% from the stock’s previous close.

The analysts wrote, “Despite the mild sell-off post earnings, we still like GLW as our top pick. Long-term growth prospects are as encouraging as they have been in recent quarters. The quarter and guidance were essentially in line with our expectations so we would attribute the underperformance to the unchanged, though still positive, commentary on the glass market.”

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Analysts at HSBC downgraded shares of Corning from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Analysts at Credit Agricole downgraded shares of Corning from an “underperform” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Analysts at CLSA downgraded shares of Corning from an “underperform” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $20.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, analysts at Vetr upgraded shares of Corning from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $25.52 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. The stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $25.04.

[sirmike [Blogger]]

Corning Represents A Growth-Oriented Value Investment

(Quelle: SeekingAlpha) Corning has the best of both value and growth worlds.

They're a leader in releasing high-quality penetrative technologies.
Their history is one of strategic business growth partnered with strong cash flows.
I would like to discuss the current dynamic behind Corning Inc. (NYSE:GLW) and the upside it represents for investors. It's arguably a "growth" company, with a high beta and growth-like trading patterns, but factors like debt reconstruction, increasing dividends and strong financials are more synonymous with value companies.

The diversified technology company has stayed strong through hard times with an increasing price of raw materials, global competition and demand headwinds due to global economic uncertainty. The same cannot be said about its stock price, which leaves the individual investor in an interesting position.

Investment Thesis

GLW is, as I mentioned, a diversified technology company. They've recently acquired iBwave Solutions, Inc. and Samsung's' Fiber Optics business line, and partnered with OLED Works and BMW, successfully building their operations and asset portfolio. Their latest investment was an LCD factory in China, which enabled localized service to Chinese customers. However, the time tested competitive advantage that GLW has prided itself on isn't acquisitions, it's releasing cutting edge technology.

Throughout the years, GLW has successfully introduced quality products at the cusp of the introduction of a penetrative technology to the market, meaning they are able to see where a market is going and be the leaders in developing that new product. One such example is GLWs Gorilla Glass, which has been able to adapt to the dynamic glass market time and time again. For years, the durability and quality of Gorilla Glass remained untouched. However, one of the main headwinds GLW is currently facing is competition brought on by firms that caught up to the technology behind Gorilla Glass, namely in the mobile tech market. I argue that at this point, GLW will do what it does best and move on to developing a new technology, and there's proof that it already has.

Display Technology Segment

After four re-releases of Gorilla Glass, each one more impact resistant, cost effective and high-quality than the last, competitors have entered the arena. Where Corning had almost total access to contracts with large corporations to produce glass for mobile devices and other consumer electronics, there is now a highly competitive marketplace that leads to price competition and lower sales prices for GLW. It should be mentioned at this point that GLW's last reported quarterly sales clocked in at an all-time high with near record margins, so it may not be as bad as analysts expect.

In his most recent address to shareholders, CEO Wendell Weeks noted that Gorilla Glass Automotive has a new opportunity in the automotive market, as evidenced by the BMW contract. This glass is one-third the weight and 25% thinner than conventional windshields, while maintaining quality and safety standards. For consumers, this move will provide better fuel economy. For producers, it will provide an added selling point, and for GLW, this move represents continued excellence in penetrative technology.

GLW is ahead of the curve in this segment - that has been established. But by how far? The article included below argues by three years. As noted in the following Bloomberg article, GLWs Willow material is made to provide flexible glass to fit a flexible phone when mobile tech reaches that point. Until then, they expect to see an increase in sales sometime this year.

GLW used to have sole access to corporate demand for smartphone glass, and supplied that demand with Gorilla Glass. There's bound to be a threat of substitutes in any market, but what GLW has done to address that is impressive to say the least. They've expanded the capabilities of Gorilla Glass to include Automotive, TV-entertainment, LCD and flexible glass applications. In so doing, they have successfully expanded the number of clients they service and should see an appropriate increase in sales. This thought is confirmed, if nothing else than in the short term, by pulling in the most sales per quarter in their MRQ earnings call.

Most Recent Earnings

("Core" refers to non-GAAP metrics excluding yen/USD rate, as GLW has implemented a swap hedge on the currency):

- 4% yoy increase in total core sales
- 21% core EPS increase over 1Q2014
- Lower than expected product price declines (expected to continue below forecasts)
- Core gross margin was 44%, up 1% from 1Q2014

Display Technologies saw a 4% yoy increase in core earnings due to high growth in LCD glass volume and cost reductions.

Optical Communications saw an 85% increase in core earnings from 1Q 2014 due to the acquisition of TR Manufacturing and increases in carrier and enterprise network sales.

Environmental Technologies saw a 12% increase in core earnings since 1Q 2014 due to the higher margins associated with products in this line and higher North American volume.

Specialty Materials saw a 44% increase in core earnings since 1Q2014 due to explosive demand for Gorilla Glass 4.

Life Sciences saw a 14% decline in core equity earnings since 1Q2014 due to lack of demand.

CFO James Flaws cited increases in optical communications and environmental technologies as growth drivers in 2Q 2015, and that acquisitions should drive growth in every segment except specialty materials and life sciences. This decrease should be due to lower sales in advanced optics and the impact of currency conversions.

Valuation

In order to value GWL, I used a typical DDM and condensed DCF. This is because GLW has held a steady and sizable dividend and its ability to produce cash flows is almost astounding.

Assumptions - DDM Growth Rates

F2015 F2016 F2017 F2018 F2019
Revenue 17.10% 11.90% 10.50% 12.30% 15.20%
Cost of Rev
(% of Rev)
57.00% 57.60% 57.60% 57.60% 57.50%
Total Operating
Expenses
15.90% 7.40% 6.50% 9.60% 9.80%
Operating Income 25.70% 13.50% 14.30% 14.50% 20.60%
Net Interest Income 3.40% 10.70% 25.30% 22.00% 15.40%
NIBT 20.60% 22.60% 23.70% 24.40% 22.80%
Net Income 13.20% 7.50% 16.10% 13.80% 15.40%
Payout Ratio -4.80% 24.20% 1.20% 0.00% 5.20%
WACC .105 .110 .115 .115 .115
LT Growth .035
Price $26.35

I arrived at a base case price of $26.35. Below is some supplemental information that helps in understanding some of these assumptions:

The long-term growth rate of 3.5% is appropriate for two reasons: 1) GLW has value in the making, but in its current stage, it is arguably a growth company, which lends itself to a higher growth rate and 2) GLW has consistently outperformed GDP by around 1%, and I expect it to continue to do so due to the higher margins associated with penetrative technologies.

The revenue growth in F2015 is higher than one might expect because the years preceding this number had a high deviation and guidance from CEO Weeks has been taken into account. If you analyze GLWs past yoy growth rates, 17.1% isn't unreasonable.

Net interest income increases rapidly in the later years because GLW reconstructed their debt structure over the last two years and has accordingly experienced increasing interest income and decreasing interest expenses, which are expected to continue.

I factored in an expected rate hike later in 2015 to the WACC number as well as forecasted incremental hikes thereafter.

Assumptions - DCF Growth Rates

F2015 F2016 F2017 F2018 F2019
Operating Cash Floww
14.70% 11.10% 10.70% 11.50% 13.00%
Capital Spending 12.30% 13.00% 8.20% 15.90% 16.20%
FCF -31.90% 10.50% 11.40% 10.20% 12.00%
WACC .105 .110 .115 .115 .115
LT Growth .035
Price $34.79

I arrived at a base case price of $34.79. Below is some supplemental information that helps in understanding some of these assumptions:

This figure may seem high, but GLW's ability to generate cash is, as I said, astounding. Their average yoy FCF growth rate from 2005-2014 was 9.8%. From 2010-2014, it was 19.3%. I expect this trend to continue because cash flows don't disappear as a company matures. If anything, they may increase more so.

GLW's OCF also has a high deviation. This is probably due to their acquisitions and liquidations of long-term assets. I used CAGRs in this model because they are generally more conservative than yoy rates, but the average yoy OCF growth 2005-2014 was 14.7%.

Relative Valuation

When compared to its peers, GLW stacks up fairly well. I've included the P/CF, 1-year Sales Growth Rate, 3-year Dividend Growth Rate, Net Profit Margin, ROA and Quick Ratio. These metrics illustrate how GLW has both growth and value qualities, and is a top performer among its competitors.

Value metrics: Its P/CF multiple is 6.93, which is the second lowest out of 6 competitors (the lowest multiple is 5.71 held by Flextronics (NASDAQ:FLEX). The Net Profit Margin is 26.60, which is the highest among its peers Amphenol (NYSE:APH) was in second with 13.59). The Quick Ratio is 4.17, which is the highest of its competitors (second highest is Kyocera (NYSE:KYO) with 3.10).

In short, GLW has the metrics of a value company. It's undervalued, able to make money, and is the most liquid of its competitors. From a value standpoint, GLW proves to be a good investment.

Growth metrics: The 1-year Sales Growth Rate is 16.84, which is the highest of the 6 competitors (coming in second was APH with 13.50). The 3-year Dividend Growth Rate is 32.20, which is the second highest of its 6 peers (4 have been paying dividends for 3-plus years; APH had 146.60). GLW's ROA is 8.76 (in the median of its competitors with a high of APH: 11.12 and low of KYO: 4.43).

Even though GLW has value, these metrics prove that there is growth to drive capital appreciation. Sharply increasing sales and dividends while effectively drawing returns off of assets proves that GLW's growth phase is not yet over.

I attribute this double-sided investment to two things: GLW's ability to generate cash and a stellar management team. Seeing as cash flows have already been touched upon, I'll briefly go into management. CEO Wendell Weeks has been with the company for 30 years, spending 15 in management. He's used this time to develop a deep understanding of a few key lines of business. This experience culminated with him helping bring the company back to profitability after the telecom crash in 2002. CFO James Flaws has been with the company for 42 years, spending 18 in management. He has an engineering background which helped him rise through the ranks, lead numerous teams to success, and lead different developments in GLW subsidiaries. Innovation Officer Marty Curran manages a portfolio of projects that are centered around profitability and innovation. It should be noted that this is a board position, which only adds to GLW's reputation in innovation and penetrative technologies. It operates across all segments, and given his 31 years with the company and extensive experience on different management teams in different areas of the world, he is the right person to manage it. It is with this aggregate experience and expertise that GLW manages to grow and retain value.

At this stage, GLW represents a unique play. It has the value that some look for and the growth that others look for in one investment. As the company matures, it will turn into a value investment, but at this stage, there's too much growth left to be had to ignore it until then.

Conclusion

Based off of these assumptions and weighting the more conservative DDM at 70% value, I forecast a theoretical price of $28.88, which represents a 47% upside potential. As the forecast predicts, this is five years out, which brings me to my last point: market timing. Buffett believes that investors should buy good companies with little regard to macroeconomic conditions, and I agree. Yes there is turmoil abroad (thanks Greece), but GLW is a grade A value investment with staying power.

Their ability to generate cash, remain a leading producer of penetrative technologies, and strategically expand their asset and customer base solidifies GLW's place in the global market as a leader in diversified technology products and services.

[sirmike [Blogger]]

Quelle: zacks.com


Corning 2Q Earnings Beat Estimates, FX Concerns Remain

Corning (GLW - Analyst Report) reported second-quarter core earnings of 38 cents, ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 37 cents. The Optical segment was the high point of the quarter, benefiting from stronger demand and recent acquisitions.

Revenue
Reported revenue of $2.34 billion, grew 3.4% sequentially, dropped 5.6% year over year and was 8.3% below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.56. Core revenues were higher at $2.52 billion but stilled the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

The Display Technologies segment generated around 34% of total revenue. Segment revenue was down 18.8% sequentially and 20.1% year over year. LCD glass volumes increased at a low single-digit percentage rate from last year, so was not enough to offset the impact of expected glass price declines.

Optical Communications (34% of revenue) grew 14.8% sequentially and 16.6% from the year-ago quarter, in line with expectations. The results were driven by continued strength in FTTH sales in North America as well as the contribution from recent acquisitions.

The Environmental Technologies segment generated around 11% of revenue, down 7.8% sequentially and 8.8% year over year, worse than expected. This was mainly on account of unfavorable currency impact that management mentioned on the last earnings call.

Specialty Materials generated 12% of revenue, flat sequentially and 8.7% year over year, slightly worse than expected. Gorilla Glass volumes grew at a mid-teens percentage rate but, similar to last quarter, the strength was partially offset by weakness in advanced optics.

The Life Sciences business accounted for around 9% of revenue. The business was up 7.1% sequentially but down 5.4% from a year ago, impacted by curency.

Margins
The gross margin was 47.8%, up 61 bps sequentially and 622 bps from last year.

The operating expenses of $552 million were up 4.2% sequentially and 6.4% year over year. R&D was down as a percentage of sales from both previous and year-ago quarters. SG&A increased 20 bps sequentially and 191 bps from last year. The net result was an operating margin of 24.2%, which expanded 45 bps sequentially and 357 bps from the year-ago quarter.

Net Income
Corning’s core net earnings were $522 million, or 22.3% of sales compared to $484 million or 21.4% in the previous quarter and $487 million, or 20.8% in the year-ago quarter. Net income on a GAAP basis was $496 million ($0.36 a share) compared to $407 million ($0.29) in the previous quarter and $169 million ($0.12 a share) in the Jun quarter of 2014.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow
Inventories were up 4.1% during the quarter, with inventory turns going from 3.6X to 3.5X. DSOs are flat at around 60. Corning ended the quarter with $5.47 billion in cash and short term investments, up $406 million during the quarter. However, the company has a huge debt balance. Including long term liabilities and short term debt, the net debt position was $1.44 billion at the end of the quarter, which increased from the net debt balance of $1.10 billion at the beginning of the quarter.

Cash generated from operations was $547 million, with the main uses of cash being $308 million on capex, $286 million on acquisitions, $616 million on share repurchases and $173 million on dividends.

Guidance
Third quarter glass volumes are expected to increase in the low single-digit percentage rate with price declines remaining moderate. Optical Communications sales are expected to grow at a mid-teens percentage rate year over year due to continued strength in FTTH and data center, Environmental to be down slightly impacted by a weaker euro and Specialty Materials to decline at a high single-digits percentage due to a cyclical slowdown in the semiconductor industry (GG volumes will be up high single digits sequentially and flat year over year).

Recommendation
Corning’s second-quarter earnings were ahead of expectations, but all except the optical communications business did worse than expected. As a result, shares slid lower as soon as the markets opened.

Currency remains a major headwind, accounting for the below-expectations performance in three of the segments. Corning has hedge contracts in place that partially protect its results. Management has said that 100% of 2015 earnings, 80% of 2016 earnings and 70% of 2017 earnings have been hedged under the new program.
The company is also returning cash to investors both as share repurchases and dividends, increasing the dividend by 20% last December and authorizing a new share repurchase program of $2 billion last week.

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Schott optimistic about thin glass demand in the semiconductor industry

Rebecca Kuo, Taipei; Alex Wolfgram, DIGITIMES [Wednesday 2 September 2015]

Schott is optimistic about the roll that thin glass products will play in the market, particularly in the semiconductor industry where thin glass substrate demand is on the rise, according to the company speaking at Semicon Taiwan 2015.

The company also has high hopes for the glass used in smartphones for fingerprint recognition sensors in addition to being used for replacing sapphire for various components. Schott also believes thin glass will pave the way for applications in new micro batteries that require low production costs and can withstand high production temperatures.

The maker has already begun mass production of 0.145mm and 0.2mm products and also produces specialized 0.025mm products.