Zacks Research Upgrades Knowles (NYSE:KN) to “Strong-Buy”

Knowles (NYSE:KN) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Knowles in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Knowles from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $44.00 price target on Knowles in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Craig Hallum reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price objective on shares of Knowles in a research report on Friday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.67.

Knowles Price Performance

Shares of KN stock opened at $34.52 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $38.08 and its 200 day moving average is $31.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 3.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $2.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.84 and a beta of 1.59. Knowles has a twelve month low of $19.29 and a twelve month high of $42.93.

Knowles (NYSE:KN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The communications equipment provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $166.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $156.97 million. Knowles had a return on equity of 11.45% and a net margin of 10.63%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.24 earnings per share. Knowles has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.340-0.380 EPS. Research analysts expect that Knowles will post 1.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Raymond D. Cabrera sold 6,178 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.28, for a total transaction of $224,137.84. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 127,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,641,844.60. This trade represents a 4.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey Niew sold 142,857 shares of Knowles stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.25, for a total value of $4,749,995.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 883,719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,383,656.75. The trade was a 13.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 169,236 shares of company stock valued at $5,728,034. Corporate insiders own 2.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Knowles

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Knowles by 212.9% during the first quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 973 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 662 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in Knowles by 35.9% in the second quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,151 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. McMillan Office Inc. bought a new stake in Knowles in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Knowles by 94.5% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,842 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 895 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in shares of Knowles during the 2nd quarter valued at $80,000. 96.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Knowles

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.