GLW vs TTMI

Key Takeaways

• Corning Inc. (GLW) is a diversified materials science giant with $16.4 billion in core sales for fiscal 2025, while TTM Technologies (TTMI) is a specialized PCB and RF components manufacturer with $2.9 billion in net sales for the same period.
• Both companies are riding the generative AI infrastructure wave, but through different channels: GLW via optical fiber and connectivity solutions, and TTMI via advanced printed circuit boards (PCBs) for data centers.
• GLW's upgraded Springboard plan targets $11 billion in incremental annualized sales by 2028, while TTMI is targeting 15–20% annual revenue growth with a goal to double earnings from 2025 to 2027.
• TTMI recorded an all-time quarterly high non-GAAP EPS of $0.70 in Q4 2025, while GLW delivered core EPS of $0.72 with significantly larger scale and a core operating margin of 20.2%.
• GLW offers breadth across six business segments; TTMI is concentrated in aerospace and defense (41% of sales) and data center computing (28%), making each stock's risk profile meaningfully different.

Introduction

Investors seeking exposure to the hardware layer of the artificial intelligence revolution are increasingly looking beyond semiconductor names to the companies that supply the physical infrastructure enabling AI workloads. This comparison examines two such companies: GLW (Corning Inc.), the 170-year-old materials science leader known for Gorilla Glass and optical fiber, and TTMI (TTM Technologies Inc.), a specialized manufacturer of advanced printed circuit boards and radio frequency components. Though they operate at vastly different scales, both have posted double-digit revenue growth driven by surging demand for data center and AI-related products. This stock comparison is relevant for investors evaluating different approaches to capturing value in the evolving AI hardware ecosystem.

GLW Overview and Recent Performance

Corning Inc. (GLW) is one of the world's foremost materials science companies, operating across six primary segments: Optical Communications, Display Technologies, Specialty Materials, Automotive, Life Sciences, and Hemlock and Emerging Growth Businesses. The company is best known for its Gorilla Glass used in smartphones and tablets, but its largest and fastest-growing segment is Optical Communications, which now accounts for roughly 40% of net sales and has been the primary beneficiary of AI-driven data center buildouts.

In recent months, GLW has delivered a string of record-setting quarterly results. For full-year 2025, the company reported core sales of $16.41 billion, up 13% year over year, while core EPS (earnings per share) jumped 29% to $2.52. The fourth quarter alone saw core sales climb 14% to $4.41 billion and core EPS rise 26% to $0.72. Notably, the company's Optical Communications segment posted 24% year-over-year growth in Q4 2025, powered by enterprise demand for Gen AI connectivity products. Corning's management has also upgraded its Springboard plan, now targeting an additional $11 billion in annualized sales by the end of 2028, up from the original $8 billion target. Other significant catalysts include a $2.5 billion commitment from Apple to produce iPhone and Apple Watch cover glass at Corning's Kentucky facility and a multi-billion-dollar optical fiber agreement with Meta. The company's core operating margin reached 20.2% in Q4 2025, reflecting a 390-basis-point improvement since the Springboard plan launched.

TTMI Overview and Recent Performance

TTM Technologies Inc. (TTMI) is a leading global manufacturer of technology products including mission systems, radio frequency (RF) components, RF microwave and microelectronic assemblies, and technologically advanced printed circuit boards (PCBs) and substrates. The company serves several high-value end markets, with Aerospace and Defense representing 41% of net sales and Data Center Computing accounting for 28% in its most recent quarter. TTM's name itself stands for "time-to-market," reflecting its emphasis on accelerating customers' product development timelines.

TTMI has experienced powerful momentum in recent quarters, benefiting from strong demand across both defense and AI-related computing markets. Full-year 2025 net sales reached $2.9 billion, a 19% increase from the prior year, while non-GAAP EPS rose 45% to $2.46. In the fourth quarter, the company achieved an all-time quarterly record non-GAAP EPS of $0.70 on net sales of $774.3 million, also up 19% year over year. Combined Data Center Computing and Networking revenues grew to 36% of total company sales, driven by generative AI demand. TTMI's Aerospace and Defense program backlog stood at $1.6 billion, with a total book-to-bill ratio of 1.35 in Q4, indicating healthy forward demand. Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) margins expanded to 16.3% of net sales. For fiscal 2026, management has guided for 15–20% revenue growth, with ambitions to double earnings between 2025 and 2027 through organic growth and strategic capacity investments in North America and Southeast Asia.

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Head-to-Head Comparison

The most striking contrast between GLW and TTMI is one of scale and diversification. GLW generated $16.41 billion in core sales in 2025 — more than five times TTMI's $2.9 billion — and operates across six distinct business segments spanning consumer electronics, automotive, life sciences, and telecommunications. TTMI, by comparison, is far more concentrated, with two end markets — Aerospace & Defense and Data Center Computing — together accounting for roughly 69% of sales. This concentration has been a tailwind as both defense and AI spending surged, but it also makes TTMI more sensitive to shifts in government procurement cycles or enterprise capital expenditure decisions.

On profitability, GLW's core operating margin of 20.2% reflects strong pricing power and economies of scale, while TTMI's non-GAAP operating margin of 12.7% — though improving — reflects the more capital-intensive, lower-margin nature of PCB manufacturing. However, TTMI's growth rate has been faster: 19% revenue growth in both Q4 and full-year 2025 versus GLW's 13–14%. Both companies are AI beneficiaries, but through different channels: GLW provides the optical fiber that connects data centers, while TTMI provides the advanced circuit boards inside the servers. From a valuation perspective, GLW's larger market capitalization (over $94 billion as of early 2026) reflects its established brand, diversified revenue base, and consumer-facing products, while TTMI's smaller scale presents a different risk-reward calculus. TTMI also carries a debt load of $916 million against $501 million in cash, whereas GLW's $1.52 billion in cash against $7.63 billion in long-term debt reflects a more leveraged but also more institutionally financed balance sheet appropriate for a company of its size.

Tickeron AI Verdict

In a head-to-head stock comparison, Tickeron's AI-driven analytical framework would likely find both GLW and TTMI to be in strong uptrends with meaningful AI-related catalysts. However, the AI might express a measured preference for GLW based on several observable factors: broader diversification across six business segments that reduces single-market dependency, a higher and more consistently expanding core operating margin (20.2% versus 12.7%), substantial free cash flow generation of $1.72 billion, and multiple visible growth catalysts — including the Springboard plan upgrade, the Apple and Meta agreements, and sustained optical communications momentum. TTMI's faster top-line growth and record earnings trajectory are compelling, but the company's concentrated exposure to defense and data center spending — while currently advantageous — introduces greater sensitivity to sector-specific headwinds. On balance, the AI would likely view GLW as offering the stronger combination of growth consistency, margin expansion, and risk diversification in the current market environment.

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