Corning: Q4 Outlook Misses; Sees Big Drop In Demand

So the logical appears to true: in a recession, people buy fewer big screen TVs. That’s the obvious conclusion from Corning ’s (GLW) disappointing fourth quarter outlook. For Q3 , the company posted revenue of $1.56 billion and profits before items of 46 cents a share; the Street had expected $1.59 billion and 44 cents. The company noted that currency factors gave a lift to profits. Glass volume was up 2% sequentially and 18% year over year. the company’s wholly owned business fell 10% sequentially and 2% year over year, while the Samsung Corning venture saw volume rise 12% sequentially and 38% year over year. But the real story is the weak outlook: Corning sees Q4 revenue of $1.2 billion to $1.3 billion, with profits of 20-28 cents a share, well short of Street expectations of $1.54 billion and 42 cents. Corning sees LCD glass volume down 10%-20% sequentially, with the wholly owned business down 20%-30%, and Samsung corning down 5%-15%. Year over year, combined glass ... (link)