Knowles Corporation $KN Shares Sold by Sterling Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Sterling Capital Management cut its Knowles stake by 91.9% in the third quarter, selling 31,533 shares and retaining 2,764 shares valued at approximately $103,000.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: Knowles has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $41, compared with a recent share price of $32.90.
• Knowles exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.38 in EPS versus a $0.36 consensus estimate and $184 million in revenue, up 20.3% year over year.

Sterling Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in Knowles Corporation (NYSE:KN - Free Report) by 91.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,764 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock after selling 31,533 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Knowles were worth $103,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KN. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in Knowles by 23.6% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,479 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Knowles by 0.6% in the first quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 76,098 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $1,954,000 after purchasing an additional 463 shares during the period. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC raised its stake in shares of Knowles by 6.7% during the second quarter. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC now owns 8,391 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $348,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Knowles by 5.3% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 12,137 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $312,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. 96.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on KN. Zacks Research raised Knowles from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Knowles in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Knowles from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Knowles from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Knowles from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Knowles has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $41.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Knowles news, Director Cheryl Shavers sold 6,618 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.27, for a total value of $259,888.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 35,723 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,402,842.21. This represents a 15.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Knowles Price Performance

Shares of KN opened at $32.90 on Tuesday. Knowles Corporation has a twelve month low of $20.57 and a twelve month high of $42.93. The stock's 50 day moving average is $35.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a PE ratio of 32.47 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 2.94, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Knowles (NYSE:KN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The communications equipment provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $184.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $172.10 million. Knowles had a return on equity of 11.82% and a net margin of 10.76%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 20.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.33 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Knowles Corporation will post 1.10 earnings per share for the current year.

About Knowles

Knowles Corporation NYSE: KN is a global manufacturer of advanced electronic components and solutions for audio, communications, medical, industrial and other specialized applications. The company develops products that support sound capture, audio processing, signal management and high-performance connectivity in a range of electronic devices and systems.

Its portfolio includes microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) microphones, audio processors, speakers, receivers, balanced armature drivers and other acoustic components.

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