Knowles (NYSE:KN) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Knowles Corporation (NYSE:KN) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $21.75 and last traded at $21.90, with a volume of 586 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $21.64.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KN has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Knowles from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Craig Hallum lifted their price objective on shares of Knowles from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Knowles presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.00.

Knowles Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.16 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $19.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Air A. Jr. Bastarrica sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.94, for a total value of $209,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 62,537 shares in the company, valued at $1,309,524.78. This trade represents a 13.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Robert J. Perna sold 56,130 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.47, for a total transaction of $1,148,981.10. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 66,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,362,319.44. This trade represents a 45.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Knowles

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KN. Ariel Investments LLC lifted its position in Knowles by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 4,657,747 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $70,798,000 after acquiring an additional 174,549 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Knowles by 3.7% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,592,223 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $39,402,000 after purchasing an additional 92,792 shares during the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP lifted its holdings in shares of Knowles by 31.5% in the first quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,611,679 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $24,498,000 after purchasing an additional 386,155 shares in the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new position in shares of Knowles during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,798,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Knowles by 6.1% during the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,220,236 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $21,635,000 after buying an additional 70,078 shares in the last quarter. 96.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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).