Corning Shares Rise 17% on Sales Forecast

Corning Inc. shares surged 17% on Friday after the biggest maker of fiber used in telecommunications networks said sales may increase this year after a first-quarter decline.

“We are increasingly confident that the first quarter will represent a bottom,” Chief Executive John Loose said at a meeting with investors in New York.

Shares of the unprofitable company rose $1.08 to $7.52 on Nasdaq. They fell 83% last year as telephone carriers cut spending on fiber and parts that move traffic through networks.

Sales might rise this year as economies improve and customer spending picks up, Loose said. Corning predicted first-quarter sales of $925 million to $950 million, down from $1.92 billion in the year-earlier period and $974 million in the fourth quarter.

“We’re expecting this to be a trough quarter, and we’re expecting the second quarter to be very much like that too,” said Needham & Co. analyst Mark Langley. He rates Corning a “buy” and doesn’t own the stock.

The Corning, N.Y.-based company said shipments of optical fiber will rise at least 15% in the first quarter from the fourth.

Analysts expect Corning to lose 17 cents a share on sales of $944.3 million, according to Thomson Financial/First Call.