Knowles (NYSE:KN) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Knowles Co. (NYSE:KN - Get Free Report) gapped down prior to trading on Friday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $18.25, but opened at $16.70. Knowles shares last traded at $17.52, with a volume of 281,514 shares traded.

The communications equipment provider reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.01). Knowles had a negative net margin of 27.53% and a positive return on equity of 5.16%. The company had revenue of $142.50 million during the quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Knowles from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Knowles from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Craig Hallum downgraded shares of Knowles from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $17.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Knowles

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Knowles by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 14,417 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $287,000 after buying an additional 588 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Knowles by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,643 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 607 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Knowles by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,095 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 669 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Knowles by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 17,985 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 748 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Knowles by 10.0% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 9,276 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $167,000 after purchasing an additional 845 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.35% of the company's stock.

Knowles Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $19.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.48. The stock has a market cap of $1.62 billion, a PE ratio of -7.84 and a beta of 1.42.

Knowles Company 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).