New York, Feb 26, 2026, 18:47 EST — After-hours
- The stock dropped 6.3% during regular hours, then edged down again in after-hours trading.
- After a sharp run-up, the stock gave back some ground, even as Citigroup boosted its price target.
- Next up: a dividend record date, plus a round of investor conference appearances.
Corning Inc (NYSE: GLW) finished Thursday at $150.30, down 6.3%. In after-hours, it edged lower again, off another 1% to $148.73. That follows Wednesday’s $160.43 close—quite a swing from $139.51 back on Feb. 20.
This turnaround matters for Corning right now. Investors have been buying into the company’s story: faster growth, driven by rising demand for optical communications and a ramp-up in data-center construction. Back in late January, CEO Wendell Weeks pitched a “highly profitable launch point for future growth” as Corning updated its Springboard sales plan and, using its “core” metrics—a non-GAAP yardstick that excludes certain items—projected stronger first-quarter numbers. Corning Investor Relations
U.S. stocks pulled back Thursday, snapping a two-day rally for the major indexes. Tech names, especially Nvidia and other AI stocks, weighed on the market as investors reversed course. The retreat put pressure on broader sentiment.
Corning kicked off the session at $158.36, then dipped to $148.50 at the day’s low, Investing.com data shows. Trading volume came in around 16.3 million shares—matching the brisk activity logged during the stock’s recent rally.
Corning finished Wednesday at $160.43, its best close ever. The stock also touched a 52-week peak of $162.10 during the session, numbers from Macrotrends show.
Citigroup lifted its price target on Corning to $170 from $120 on Wednesday, sticking with a Buy. The firm also placed Corning and Lumentum on what it termed an “upside 30-day catalyst watch” before the Optical Fiber Communication conference set for March 17-19. Both names, Citi said, are “pillars” in the AI optical networking space. TipRanks
An affiliate disclosed plans to sell 137,514 Corning shares, according to a Form 144 filed Thursday. The SEC filing signals intent under Rule 144, but it’s not confirmation that any shares have changed hands yet.
The next dividend record date lands on Friday for the company. Corning’s board approved a quarterly payout of $0.28 per share, with payment set for March 30 to investors holding shares as of Feb. 27, according to the company.
Corning shares surged 4.4% on Tuesday, finishing at $151.59, MarketWatch data show. That pop came even before Wednesday’s sharp rally drove the stock to fresh highs.
The rapid rally makes the stock vulnerable to pullbacks if near-term demand or margin trends disappoint. Following Corning’s earnings, Morningstar’s William Kerwin cautioned that “it’s time to temper the excitement”—a lot of optimism is “baked into the stock price already,” he said, according to Reuters. That report also pointed out that fiber-optic products account for close to 40% of Corning’s revenue. Reuters
Corning is set for Susquehanna’s Fifteenth Annual Technology Conference on Friday, Feb. 27. Investor Relations VP Ann Nicholson is slated for one-on-one meetings, according to the schedule.
Next up, CFO Ed Schlesinger is scheduled to speak March 3 at Morgan Stanley’s Technology, Media & Telecom Conference in San Francisco, where a live webcast will be available.
