Corning 4Q net income falls, but beats predictions

CORNING, N.Y. (AP) - Revenue surged at Corning during the fourth quarter on strong demand for its Gorilla Glass, which is used in many smartphones and computer tablets.

Sales in the company's specialty materials division, which makes the glass, surged 68 percent in the final months of the year, and 10 percent above the previous quarter.

Shares of the company, based in Corning, N.Y., rose more than 1 percent in premarket trading.

Fourth-quarter net income fell 42 percent on restructuring costs and other charges.

Adjusted for one-time charges, Corning edged out Wall Street's per-share expectations by a penny.

Corning earned $283 million, or 19 cents per share, down from $491 million, or 33 cents per share, in the same quarter last year. Excluding one-time charges, the company posted an adjusted profit of 34 cents per share for the recent quarter.

Revenue rose 14 percent to $2.15 billion from $1.89 billion, which also beat out Wall Street predictions.

Sales of specialty materials totaled $399 million for the quarter, led by Gorilla Glass, which topped $1 billion in annual sales for the first time, according to Corning.

Display technologies sales rose 3 percent to $800 million, while telecommunications sales jumped 10 percent to $540 million.

Gross equity earnings at the company's Dow Corning Corp. joint venture, excluding one-time items, tumbled 33 percent to $33 million, hurt by weak solar industry sales.

For the full year, Corning earned $1.73 billion, or $1.15 per share, down from $2.81 billion, or $1.77 per share, in 2011. Revenue rose to $8.01 billion from $7.89 billion.

Corning said that while it expects specialty materials sales to fall in the first quarter, which is typically its slowest of the year, it expects double-digit market growth for Gorilla Glass for the full year.

Shares of Corning Inc. rose 25 cents to $12.30 in premarket trading.

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