BNP Paribas Financial Markets Sells 16,808 Shares of Knowles Co. (NYSE:KN)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its stake in shares of Knowles Co. (NYSE:KN) by 53.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 14,358 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after selling 16,808 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Knowles were worth $286,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC raised its position in Knowles by 340.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 145,401 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,622,000 after purchasing an additional 112,354 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Knowles by 173.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 15,838 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 10,038 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Knowles by 72.4% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,451 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 1,449 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its stake in Knowles by 66.6% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,869 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 1,947 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in shares of Knowles by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 275,317 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $5,487,000 after buying an additional 5,019 shares in the last quarter. 96.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Knowles

In other Knowles news, SVP Raymond D. Cabrera sold 5,545 shares of Knowles stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.25, for a total value of $95,651.25. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 111,286 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,919,683.50. This trade represents a 4.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Knowles Stock Up 2.5%

Knowles stock opened at $16.62 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.27 and a beta of 1.40. Knowles Co. has a twelve month low of $12.19 and a twelve month high of $20.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $15.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.60.

Knowles (NYSE:KN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.18. Knowles had a positive return on equity of 5.52% and a negative net margin of 34.66%. The company had revenue of $132.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $128.95 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.18 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on KN shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Knowles from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Knowles from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Craig Hallum upgraded shares of Knowles from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $17.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th.

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).