Knowles (NYSE:KN) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Knowles (NYSE:KN) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Knowles in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Craig Hallum reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of Knowles in a report on Friday, February 6th. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Knowles from $18.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Knowles in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.67.

Knowles Price Performance

KN stock opened at $27.27 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $2.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.47 and a beta of 1.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $23.71 and its 200 day moving average is $22.70. Knowles has a 52 week low of $12.19 and a 52 week high of $27.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 2.75.

Knowles (NYSE:KN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $162.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $156.23 million. Knowles had a net margin of 7.45% and a return on equity of 9.76%. The company’s revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.27 earnings per share. Knowles has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.220-0.260 EPS.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Raymond D. Cabrera sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.75, for a total transaction of $267,500.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 102,019 shares in the company, valued at $2,729,008.25. The trade was a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Air A. Jr. Bastarrica sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.76, for a total transaction of $321,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 48,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,289,832. This trade represents a 19.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 241,051 shares of company stock worth $6,156,777. 2.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in Knowles by 27.0% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 70,073 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $1,064,000 after purchasing an additional 14,900 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Knowles by 4.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 51,722 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $786,000 after buying an additional 2,245 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Knowles by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 238,557 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,626,000 after buying an additional 15,827 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Knowles in the 1st quarter worth about $3,335,000. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Knowles by 26.1% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 12,995 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $229,000 after acquiring an additional 2,686 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.35% of the company’s stock.

Knowles Company Profile

Knowles Corporation (NYSE: KN) is a leading developer and manufacturer of advanced micro-acoustic, audio processing and precision device solutions. The company’s product portfolio includes microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) microphones, balanced armature receivers, acoustic filters, and custom audio processing integrated circuits. These solutions are designed to enable clear speech, enhanced voice capture and intelligent audio performance in a variety of end markets.

Founded in 1946, Knowles has evolved from its roots in vacuum tube components to become a pure-play audio technology provider following its spin-off from Dover Corporation in 2014.