Robert W. Baird Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Knowles (NYSE:KN) Stock

Knowles (NYSE:KN) had its price target upped by investment analysts at Robert W. Baird from $30.00 to $39.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the communications equipment provider’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s target price points to a potential upside of 24.88% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Craig Hallum reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective on shares of Knowles in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Knowles in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Knowles from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.67.

Knowles Stock Up 2.3%

KN opened at $31.23 on Friday. Knowles has a 1-year low of $14.89 and a 1-year high of $31.95. The company has a current ratio of 2.75, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 61.24 and a beta of 1.49. The business has a 50 day moving average of $26.91 and a 200-day moving average of $24.52.

Knowles (NYSE:KN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The communications equipment provider reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.03. Knowles had a return on equity of 9.76% and a net margin of 7.45%.The company had revenue of $153.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $147.40 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.18 earnings per share. Knowles’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Knowles has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.280-0.320 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Knowles will post 0.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Keith Barnes sold 41,048 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.16, for a total value of $1,114,863.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Daniel J. Giesecke sold 15,885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.22, for a total value of $432,389.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 164,963 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,490,292.86. The trade was a 8.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 198,742 shares of company stock valued at $5,312,280 in the last ninety days. 2.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Aberdeen Group plc acquired a new position in Knowles during the third quarter worth $8,535,000. Hodges Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Knowles during the third quarter worth $1,878,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in Knowles by 13.0% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 334,980 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $7,808,000 after acquiring an additional 38,451 shares in the last quarter. Phocas Financial Corp. acquired a new position in Knowles during the fourth quarter worth $941,000. Finally, Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC raised its stake in Knowles by 5.6% during the third quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC now owns 1,421,713 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $33,140,000 after acquiring an additional 75,367 shares in the last quarter. 96.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Knowles News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Knowles this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 revenue and non-GAAP EPS beat consensus — revenue $153.1M (+15.8% YoY) and non‑GAAP EPS of $0.27 topped estimates; CEO said results were at/above guidance. Business Wire: Knowles Reports Q1 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Q2 guidance provided: EPS $0.280–0.320 and revenue $152M–$162M, roughly in line with or slightly above consensus — gives near-term visibility to growth and margins. KN Slide Deck / Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability metrics improved — gross profit rose (~+24.7% YoY) and operating profit expanded sharply, signaling margin recovery across product lines. Quiver: Knowles Releases Q1 2026 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript and slide deck are available — management discussed product demand in RF and medtech; details may help model revenue cadence. Seeking Alpha: KN Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Market write-ups frame the quarter as bullish overall but note mixed metrics — analysts still expect FY EPS near prior consensus, keeping valuation sensitive to execution. Yahoo Finance: Knowles Reports Bullish Q1
• Negative Sentiment: GAAP results show a different picture — Quiver highlights diluted GAAP EPS of $0.11 and a sharp decline in net income versus last year, which may create confusion between GAAP and non‑GAAP performance. Quiver: Revenue Beat but EPS Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Cash flow and liquidity weakened — operating cash was negative and cash balances fell materially year‑over‑year while capex rose, raising near-term liquidity focus. Quiver: Revenue Beat but EPS Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling reported over the past six months, which can weigh on investor sentiment despite operational improvements. Quiver: Insider Trading & Institutional Moves

Knowles Company Profile

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.