Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Acquires New Position in Knowles Corporation (NYSE:KN)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in Knowles Corporation, purchasing 14,070 shares worth approximately $214,000, according to a recent 13F filing.
• Several large institutional investors, including Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC with a $28.8 million stake, have increased their positions in Knowles during the last quarter, indicating strong institutional interest.
• Research analysis upgrades have adjusted Knowles' price targets, with Craig Hallum raising their target to $22.00 and changing their rating to "buy," reflecting positive market expectations for the stock.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in Knowles Corporation (NYSE:KN - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 14,070 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Knowles by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,499,431 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $49,814,000 after purchasing an additional 106,763 shares in the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new position in Knowles during the fourth quarter worth about $28,798,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Knowles by 38.6% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,150,158 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $17,425,000 after purchasing an additional 320,587 shares during the period. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC grew its stake in shares of Knowles by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC now owns 1,019,284 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $20,314,000 after buying an additional 36,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Knowles by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,016,435 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock valued at $20,258,000 after buying an additional 90,953 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.35% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Knowles

In related news, SVP Robert J. Perna sold 56,130 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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. The trade was a 45.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Raymond D. Cabrera sold 5,545 shares of Knowles stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.25, for a total transaction of $95,651.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 111,286 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,919,683.50. This trade represents a 4.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 71,675 shares of company stock worth $1,454,032. 2.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Knowles Stock Performance

Shares of Knowles stock traded down $0.41 on Wednesday, reaching $19.52. 731,713 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 741,669. The company has a 50 day moving average of $18.06 and a 200 day moving average of $17.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.68 billion, a PE ratio of 67.30 and a beta of 1.45. Knowles Corporation has a 52 week low of $12.19 and a 52 week high of $21.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.00 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Knowles from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen raised Knowles from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Craig Hallum boosted their price objective on Knowles from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th.

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).