Knowles (NYSE:KN) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

Knowles (NYSE:KN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of Knowles from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Craig Hallum upgraded shares of Knowles to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday.

Knowles Stock Performance

Shares of KN stock traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $17.74. 395,897 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 576,714. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $17.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.31. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Knowles has a 52-week low of $12.78 and a 52-week high of $19.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.15 and a beta of 1.42.

Knowles (NYSE:KN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The communications equipment provider reported $0.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.16). Knowles had a negative net margin of 24.36% and a positive return on equity of 5.39%. The business had revenue of $204.70 million during the quarter.

Insider Transactions at Knowles

In other news, Director Cheryl L. Shavers sold 12,579 shares of Knowles stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.29, for a total transaction of $217,490.91. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 48,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $846,051.57. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Knowles news, Director Cheryl L. Shavers sold 12,579 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.29, for a total value of $217,490.91. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 48,933 shares of the company's stock, valued at $846,051.57. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Keith Barnes sold 6,725 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.88, for a total transaction of $120,243.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 86,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,541,112.96. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,748 shares of company stock valued at $530,948. Insiders own 2.65% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in Knowles by 3.7% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 196,056 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $3,535,000 after purchasing an additional 7,059 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Knowles by 114.6% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,002 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069 shares during the period. Creative Planning lifted its position in Knowles by 9.5% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 162,625 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $2,932,000 after purchasing an additional 14,045 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in Knowles by 11.5% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 22,954 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $414,000 after purchasing an additional 2,374 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in Knowles by 20.0% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,643 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 607 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.35% of the company's stock.

About Knowles

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).

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