Susquehanna analyst Mehdi Hosseini lowered his price target on Corning (NYSE: GLW) to $23.00 (from $24.00) following a 'mixed bag' quarter, but maintained a Positive rating saying compares get easier in the 2nd-half of the year.

Hosseini commented, "Corning's glass biz is tracking in-line with our expectations, though operational issues within the Optical Comm and a down-tick in Gorilla-related revenues for 2016 are viewed as disappointing. Manufacturing software implementation negatively impacted Optical Comm segment, and thus reducing 1Q revenues by $100M (or 5%), which will also have an adverse impact on margin profile into 2Q. However, we are more surprised by the down-tick in Gorilla revenues. Corning now expects Specialty Material revenues (Gorilla ~80-85%) in 2016 to be up only by high single digits, below than prior guide of up low teens. Either customers have revised their 2H16 demand forecast lower, or Corning was aggressive with its (bottom up driven) forecast provided in January. Additionally, even using the (pro forma) operating cash (of $110M) yields margin of 5%, which is disappointing given the historical trends. Nonetheless, despite our disappointment, we also argue that the compares in 2H16 are more favorable to Corning as we expect earnings to show a Q/Q and Y/Y improvement."

The firm's 2Q Rev remains unchanged though EPS estimate has been reduced from $0.35 to $0.33 as a result of lower GM (-150bps) and greater OpEx. The firm's annual 2016/2017 revenue estimates have been reduced by ~2% each, and EPS reduced by ~6% each. 2016/2017 Rev/EPS estimates now stand at $9.61B/1.37, and $9.89B/1.53, respectively.

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Shares of Corning closed at $20.97 yesterday.