Corning (GLW) shows a little more leg

From a proxy filed this morning:

UPDATE

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Retail sales of LCD TVs in Q1 have been strong so far.

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February data:

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U.S. unit sales up 39% YOY.

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Japan unit sales up 30% YOY.

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Only January data available for Europe and China:

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Europe unit sales up 49% YOY.

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China unit sales up 109% YOY.

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Reported utilization rates at the panel makers continue to improve.

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Taiwan: 20% in December to >40% in February.

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Korea: 50% in December to almost 80% in February.

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We expect panel maker utilization rates to increase again in March.

UPDATE

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Glass orders have increased over the past several weeks.

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SCP and wholly owned business.

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Q1 total glass volume now expected to be flat to down 5% sequentially.

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Original expectation: down 20% - 25% sequentially.

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No change to our Q1 glass price decline expectations for our wholly-owned business.

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Q2 pricing not finalized, but price declines expected to be more moderate than Q1.

Price pressure from customers could still affect these expectations.

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Corning now expects to have positive net income, excluding special items, in Q1.

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Original expectations “about breakeven”.

Better retail sales commentary on US has me long Best Buy (BBY) for a trade today.

Expectations of positive net income excluding special items in Q1 are very vague.  The street is at 4 cents, above Corning’s guidance of breakeven.