Knowles (NYSE:KN) Shares Pass Above 50 Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Shares of Knowles Corporation (NYSE:KN) crossed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 50-day moving average of $36.41 and traded as high as $40.91. Knowles shares last traded at $40.7730, with a volume of 1,185,441 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on KN. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Knowles from $30.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Craig Hallum reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $38.00 price target on shares of Knowles in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Knowles from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Knowles in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.33.

Knowles Stock Up 1.8%

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.71 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a current ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $36.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.04.

Knowles (NYSE:KN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The communications equipment provider reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.03. Knowles had a net margin of 9.10% and a return on equity of 10.66%. The firm had revenue of $153.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $147.40 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.18 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 15.8% on a year-over-year basis. Knowles has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.280-0.320 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Knowles Corporation will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Knowles

In related news, VP Air A. Jr. Bastarrica sold 3,623 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.91, for a total transaction of $111,986.93. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 47,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,470,357.79. This represents a 7.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Daniel J. Giesecke sold 20,201 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.32, for a total value of $753,901.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 175,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,562,908.60. This represents a 10.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 173,058 shares of company stock valued at $5,809,156 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Knowles by 212.9% in the first quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 973 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 662 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Knowles by 94.5% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,842 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 895 shares during the period. McMillan Office Inc. acquired a new position in Knowles during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Knowles during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Knowles during the 1st quarter worth approximately $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.35% of the company’s stock.

About Knowles

Knowles Corporation (NYSE: KN) is a leading developer and manufacturer of advanced micro-acoustic, audio processing and precision device solutions. The company’s product portfolio includes microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) microphones, balanced armature receivers, acoustic filters, and custom audio processing integrated circuits. These solutions are designed to enable clear speech, enhanced voice capture and intelligent audio performance in a variety of end markets.

Founded in 1946, Knowles has evolved from its roots in vacuum tube components to become a pure-play audio technology provider following its spin-off from Dover Corporation in 2014.