What happened
Shares of Corning (GLW -0.95%) traded 11.5% higher at 3 p.m. EDT, as a reaction to the company's solid second-quarter report.
So what
The maker of advanced ceramics and glass materials posted net sales of $2.75 billion and $0.38 in adjusted earnings per share. The results amounted to 10% year-over-year revenue growth and 23% higher earnings per share, edging past Wall Street's consensus estimates of $2.69 billion and $0.37 per share, respectively.
Management also lifted their full-year revenue guidance based on the strong second-quarter performance, while looking forward to widening profit margin in the second half of 2018.
Image source: Corning.
Now what
Corning is firing on all cylinders, showing year-over-year sales growth in four of its five reporting segments and rising net profits in every division. Specialty materials led the way, boosting revenues by 23% and segment profits by 39%. The report appears to spell good news for the smartphone market as a whole, as smartphones and tablets account for a large portion of Corning's specialty materials sales, in the form of the hardened Gorilla Glass product line.
After plunging in January due to smartphone weakness and a pause in optical fiber sales, Corning's shares have gotten a second wind. Today's surge eclipsed the stock prices Corning saw at the end of 2017. That's a 25% bounce from May's 52-week lows, and a sharp return to form.
