Corning: Investor Day—Data Center Demand, Strategic Manufacturing Support New Springboard Targets

Narrow-moat Corning unveiled new Springboard targets buoyed by strong data center infrastructure demand and a new solar market platform. The firm raised its risk-adjusted 2026 annualized sales run rate target to $4 billion from $3 billion and its non-risk-adjusted target to $6 billion from $5 billion, marking a 20% increase. Management also raised its first-quarter guidance, expecting core sales to exceed $3.6 billion and non-GAAP earnings per share to comfortably reach the higher end of the previous guidance ($0.48 to $0.52). Management didn’t update its 2028 Springboard targets, suggesting that upside from the strong data center demand is more weighted toward the near to medium term, leading us to maintain our long-term thesis. We view Corning’s updated targets as positive and raise our fair value estimate to $47 per share from $43 after incorporating better revenue growth. We view shares as fairly valued.