Knowles Co. (NYSE:KN) Shares Sold by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Knowles Co. (NYSE:KN - Free Report) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,999,725 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 18,890 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 2.27% of Knowles worth $39,864,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Knowles in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $16,297,000. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in shares of Knowles by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 275,317 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $5,487,000 after acquiring an additional 5,019 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Knowles by 340.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 145,401 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $2,622,000 after acquiring an additional 112,354 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Knowles by 2.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,475,339 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $169,135,000 after acquiring an additional 265,814 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in Knowles by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 428,615 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $8,542,000 after purchasing an additional 11,510 shares in the last quarter. 96.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Knowles Stock Performance

Shares of KN stock traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $14.41. 1,194,423 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 672,764. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $15.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $17.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.83. Knowles Co. has a 12-month low of $12.19 and a 12-month high of $20.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.44 and a beta of 1.41.

Knowles (NYSE:KN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $142.50 million for the quarter. Knowles had a positive return on equity of 5.52% and a negative net margin of 34.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Craig Hallum upgraded shares of Knowles from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $17.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. StockNews.com raised Knowles from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday.

Knowles Profile

Knowles Corporation offers capacitors, radio frequency (RF) filtering products, balanced armature speakers, micro-acoustic microphones, and audio solutions in Asia, the United States, Europe, other Americas, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Precision Devices (PD); Medtech & Specialty Audio (MSA); and Consumer MEMS Microphones (CMM).