AQR Capital Management LLC Purchases 56,825 Shares of Knowles Co. (NYSE:KN)

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Knowles Co. (NYSE:KN) by 222.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,387 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 56,825 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.09% of Knowles worth $1,422,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Knowles by 569.5% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 665,947 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $11,494,000 after buying an additional 566,476 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Knowles by 6.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,678,995 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $115,277,000 after buying an additional 375,822 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of Knowles during the second quarter valued at about $3,468,000. Ariel Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Knowles by 3.7% during the first quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 5,187,144 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $83,513,000 after buying an additional 183,991 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Knowles during the second quarter valued at about $2,777,000. Institutional investors own 96.35% of the company’s stock.

Knowles Stock Performance

Knowles stock opened at $17.24 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Knowles Co. has a 1-year low of $12.78 and a 1-year high of $19.73. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $17.49 and a 200-day moving average of $17.22. The firm has a market cap of $1.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.59 and a beta of 1.42.

Knowles (NYSE:KN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The communications equipment provider reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.16). Knowles had a negative net margin of 24.36% and a positive return on equity of 5.39%. The business had revenue of $204.70 million for the quarter.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO John S. Anderson sold 10,444 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.50, for a total transaction of $193,214.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 211,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,907,200. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Cheryl L. Shavers sold 12,579 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.29, for a total transaction of $217,490.91. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 48,933 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $846,051.57. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO John S. Anderson sold 10,444 shares of Knowles stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.50, for a total transaction of $193,214.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 211,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,907,200. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,748 shares of company stock worth $530,948. Insiders own 2.65% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on KN shares. StockNews.com cut Knowles from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Knowles from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th.

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).