(1) Fourth-quarter GAAP results: Sales were $3.5 billion, gross margin was 34.2%, operating margin was 11.2%, EPS was $0.36, and operating cash flow was $623 million. Full-year GAAP results: Sales were $13.1 billion, gross margin was 32.6%, operating margin was 8.7%, EPS was $0.58, and operating cash flow was $1.9 billion.

Fourth-quarter results exceeded guidance, with record core sales of $3.9 billion, up 18% year over year, and core EPS of $0.57, up more than twice the rate of sales

Core operating margin expanded 220 basis points year over year to 18.5%

Continued strong adoption of new optical-connectivity products drove 93% year-over-year growth in Optical Communications’ Enterprise business

Display Technologies successfully implemented price increases and expects to deliver segment net income of $900 million to $950 million in 2025 and to maintain net income margin of 25%

In the first quarter, management expects core sales to grow 10% year over year to approximately $3.6 billion, with core EPS growing approximately 30% to a range of $0.48 to $0.52

CORNING, N.Y.: Corning Incorporated (NYSE: GLW) today announced its fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 results and provided its outlook for first-quarter 2025.

Wendell P. Weeks, chairman and chief executive officer, said, “We had another outstanding quarter. We grew core sales 18% year over year to $3.9 billion and grew core EPS 46% to $0.57 while expanding core operating margin by 220 basis points to 18.5%. We also expanded core ROIC 390 basis points to 12.7%. Additionally, we closed out a strong year of free cash flow generation, delivering $1.25 billion for 2024, up 42%.”

Weeks continued, “Clearly, we’re off to a terrific start on our high-confidence ‘Springboard’ plan to add more than $3 billion in annualized sales, and to achieve operating margin of 20%, by the end of 2026. Based on our outperformance, we plan to upgrade this high-confidence plan at our investor event in March. We’re capturing significant sales growth, with powerful incremental profit and cash flow, as upward cyclical and secular trends drive demand for our products and capabilities.”

Ed Schlesinger, executive vice president and chief financial officer, said, “We outperformed in the fourth quarter, driven by strong adoption of our new products for Gen AI, which drove sales growth of 93% year over year in the Enterprise portion of Optical Communications. We also successfully implemented double-digit price increases in Display Technologies to ensure we can maintain stable U.S. dollar net income in a weaker yen environment, and we expect to deliver segment net income of $900 million to $950 million in 2025 and to maintain net income margin of 25%.”

Schlesinger continued, “In the first quarter, we expect core sales to grow 10% year over year to approximately $3.6 billion, with core EPS growing approximately 30% to a range of $0.48 to $0.52.”

Fourth-Quarter 2024 Financial Highlights:

• GAAP sales were $3.50 billion. Core sales were $3.87 billion, up 18% year over year.
• GAAP EPS was $0.36. Core EPS was $0.57, up 46% year over year. The primary differences between GAAP and core EPS reflected mainly non-cash, mark-to-market adjustments associated with the company’s translated earnings contracts and Japanese-yen-denominated debt; constant currency adjustments; and other non-cash charges.
• GAAP gross margin was 34.2%. Core gross margin was 38.6%.
• GAAP operating cash flow was $623 million. Adjusted free cash flow was $409 million.

Full-Year 2024 Financial Highlights:

• GAAP sales were $13.12 billion. Core sales were $14.47 billion, up 7% year over year.
• GAAP EPS was $0.58. Core EPS was $1.96, up 15% year over year. The primary differences between GAAP and core EPS reflected mainly non-cash, mark-to-market adjustments associated with the company’s translated earnings contracts and Japanese-yen-denominated debt; constant currency adjustments; and other non-cash charges.
• GAAP gross margin was 32.6%. Core gross margin was 38.2%.
• GAAP operating cash flow was $1.94 billion. Adjusted free cash flow was $1.25 billion.

First-Quarter 2025 Outlook:

• In the first quarter, management expects core sales to grow approximately 10% year over year to $3.6 billion, with core EPS growing approximately 30% to a range of $0.48 to $0.52.

Upcoming Investor Event:

• On March 18 in New York City, Corning management will provide an upgrade to its high-confidence “Springboard” plan to add more than $3 billion in annualized sales, and to achieve an operating margin target of 20%, by the end of 2026. Management will also provide investors and industry analysts with an update on the company’s unique competitive advantage and industry and technology leadership, which enables Corning to capture the significant growth opportunities outlined in its Springboard plan.

Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year 2024 Results and Comparisons
(In millions, except per-share amounts)

Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year 2024 Segment Results
(In millions)
The fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 results below are prepared on a basis consistent with Corning’s segment reporting as presented in the company’s consolidated financial statements.

In Optical Communications, fourth-quarter sales were $1.4 billion, up 51% year over year, and full-year sales were $4.66 billion, up 16%, both driven by continued strong adoption of Corning’s new Gen AI products. Optical Communications saw record sales in the Enterprise portion of the business, which were up 93% in the fourth quarter versus fourth-quarter 2023. Fourth-quarter net income was $194 million, up 120% year over year, and full-year net income was $612 million, up 28%, both driven by strong incremental profit on the higher volume.

In Display Technologies, fourth-quarter sales were $971 million, up 12% year over year. Net income was $262 million.

In Specialty Materials, fourth-quarter sales were $515 million, up 9% year over year. Fourth-quarter net income was $81 million, up 13% sequentially. For the full year, sales grew 8% to $2.0 billion, and net income was up 29%, driven by continued strong demand for the company’s premium glass innovations and strong incremental profit on higher volume.

In Environmental Technologies, fourth-quarter sales were $397 million, down 7% year over year versus a strong fourth-quarter 2023. Fourth-quarter net income was $81 million. For the full year, sales were $1.67 billion, down 6% year over year, primarily driven by weaker global heavy-duty diesel markets, particularly in Europe.

In Life Sciences, fourth-quarter sales were $250 million, up 3% year over year. Net income was $18 million, up 6% year over year.

In Hemlock and Emerging Growth Businesses, fourth-quarter sales were $373 million, up 5% year over year.

Upcoming Investor Events
In addition to the March 18 event in New York City, Corning will attend the Susquehanna Fourteenth Annual Technology Conference on Feb. 28. Additionally, Corning will be scheduling management visits to investor offices in select cities. Visit the company’s Investor Relations website for up-to-date information.

Fourth-Quarter Conference Call Information
The company will host its fourth-quarter conference call on Wednesday, Jan. 29, at 8:30 a.m. EST. To participate, individuals may preregister here prior to the start of the call. Once the required fields are completed, click “Register.” A telephone number and PIN will be auto generated and will pop up on screen. Participants will have the choice to “Dial In” or have the system “Call Me.” A confirmation email will also be sent with specific dial-in information. To listen to a live audio webcast of the call, go to the company’s Investor Relations events page and follow the instructions.

Presentation of Information in this News Release
This news release includes non-GAAP financial measures. Non-GAAP financial measures are not in accordance with, or an alternative to, GAAP. Corning’s non-GAAP financial measures exclude the impact of items that are driven by general economic conditions and events that do not reflect the underlying fundamentals and trends in the company’s operations. The company believes presenting non-GAAP financial measures assists in analyzing financial performance without the impact of items that may obscure trends in the company’s underlying performance. Definitions of these non-GAAP financial measures and reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures can be found on the company’s website by going to the Investor Relations page and clicking “Quarterly Results” under the “Financials and Filings” tab. These reconciliations also accompany this news release.

With respect to the outlook for future periods, it is not