Knowles Corporation
Orin's own judgment of how firmly the evidence points one way — not the chance the price goes up.
Knowles' specialty-components pivot continues to deliver, with Q2 2026 revenue (ended 30 Jun) growing 14.3% YoY to $166.8M and EPS of $0.22 beating estimates of $0.305 by 8.2%, but the stock at $34.32 as of 20 Oct still trades at 43.4x trailing P/E and 23.2x EV/EBITDA — a 35% premium to the peer median EV/EBITDA of 17.2x — leaving little room for error.
The pullback from ~$40 to $34.32 has cooled RSI to 39.8 and the MACD histogram has turned negative at -0.48, suggesting near-term momentum has faded ahead of the Q3 2026 earnings release on October 22. Persistent insider selling — $33.5M in net dispositions over 24 months with zero acquisitions, including CEO sales at $38–39 in August 2026 — tempers enthusiasm despite improving fundamentals.
What could go wrong
- Rich valuation. At 43.4x trailing P/E and 23.2x EV/EBITDA versus a peer median of 17.2x, any earnings miss or guidance cut could trigger a sharp de-rating.
- Insider selling pressure. Zero insider acquisitions and $33.5M in net dispositions over 24 months, with the CEO and CFO selling aggressively in August 2026 at $38–39 per share.
- Free cash flow decline. FY2025 free cash flow fell to $81.9M from $116.5M in FY2024 as capex rose to $32.1M from $13.6M, compressing FCF margin from 21.1% to 13.8%.
- Imminent earnings catalyst. Q3 2026 results release on October 22, 2026 — the prior July 2025 report saw an 88.2% EPS miss, highlighting execution volatility.
What would change my mind
Where this comes from: results, quarter to 30 Jun · earnings vs estimates, 23 Jul · peer comparison, 20 Oct · technicals, 20 Oct. Orin's read on KN; not advice.
How has the share price moved?
Up 44.7% over twelve months, from $23.57 on 27 Oct 2025 to $34.10 at the Tue 27 Oct 2026 close. Its highest close in that time was $42.80 on 22 Jun 2026; the last close is 20.3% below it.
- Green line: the closing price each trading day.
- Grey line: the average closing price over the last 50 trading days.
- Dashed amber line: the same over the last 200 trading days — a slower, smoother line.
- Bars along the bottom: shares traded each day — green when it closed higher than the day before, rose when lower (the most, 5.2M, on 26 Jun 2026).
- Flags: the company's filings, on the day they were made (a 10-Q is the quarterly report and a 10-K the annual report; an 8-K reports a major event).
On file
All KN filings| Form | Filed | What it says | Read |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8-K | 22 Oct | — | on file |
| 13G | 14 Aug | — | on file |
| 8-K/A | 28 Jul | The Company will hold Say-On-Pay votes on an annual basis until the next stockholder advisory vote on frequency, which will occur no later than the 2032 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. | read |
| 10-Q | 28 Jul | Knowles Corporation reported revenue of $166.8 million for the three months ended June 30, 2026, an increase of 14.3% year-over-year from $145.9 million in the prior year period. | read |
| 8-K | 23 Jul | Knowles Corporation announced its results for the quarter ended June 30, 2026, via press release and presentation slides on July 23, 2026. | read |
| 13G/A | 14 Jul | — | on file |
| 13G/A | 7 Jul | — | on file |
| 13G | 30 Apr | — | on file |
Largest holders · 13F Q2 2026
Money flow| Filer | Position | Of fund |
|---|---|---|
| BlackRock | $571.6M | 0.0% |
| Vanguard Portfolio Management | $283.3M | 0.0% |
| Goldman Sachs Group | $187.8M | 0.0% |
| Vanguard Capital Management | $153.6M | 0.0% |
| State Street | $145.7M | 0.0% |
| Geode Capital Management | $100.5M | 0.0% |
| Franklin Resources | $75.7M | 0.0% |
| T. Rowe Price Associates | $72.3M | 0.0% |
| Morgan Stanley | $56.6M | 0.0% |
| Charles Schwab Investment Management | $50.0M | 0.0% |
56 of the 815 filers we track · quarter ended Q2 2026 · positions, not flows
Insiders, last 24 months: 185 Form 4 filings; open-market trades net −$30.1M. Of the 50 on hand, 0 were open-market purchases and 19 sales — the rest are grants, option exercises and tax withholding.
Ask Orin about KN
Orin answers questions about KN from its filings, transcripts and numbers — with the source behind every claim. Your own desk starts with 3 free days, card required.
Start 3 free days →How is it priced, against its own past and its sector?
Priced at 40.6× its last 12 months of profit (Tue 27 Oct close) — higher than in 2 of the 3 of its last 5 fiscal years with a P/E (middle 22.4×); the typical Technology company on the NYSE is at 39.5×.
| Measure | Now | Its usual | Sector |
|---|---|---|---|
| P/E | 40.6×above usual | 22.4× | 39.5× |
| P/S | 4.37×above usual | 3.14× | — |
| EV/EBITDA | 22.0×above usual | 17.7× | — |
| P/B | 3.6×above usual | 1.6× | — |
- "Its usual" is the middle of its own last 5 fiscal years.
P/E: the share price divided by one year of profit per share — roughly how many years of today's profit the price pays for. A company that loses money has no P/E.
P/S: the company's total market value divided by one year of revenue. Used when there is no profit to measure.
EV/EBITDA: the price of the whole company (its shares plus its debt, minus its cash) divided by one year of operating profit before interest, tax and write-downs.
P/B: the share price divided by the book value per share — what the company owns minus what it owes, as its accounts record it. When book value is tiny, P/B swings wildly and says little.
What do the analysts who cover it publish?
The analysts' average 12-month price target is $42.50 (from $35 to $50) — 25% above the Tue 27 Oct close price. That is their published opinion, not Orin's.
$42.50
$35 – $50 · +25% against the last close
- 2 buy or overweight
- 1 hold
- 0 underweight or sell
Price target: the share price an analyst publishes for about 12 months ahead. It is the opinion of the firm that wrote it; the average is across the firms that cover the company.
Overweight / underweight: analysts' rating words: overweight means the firm expects the stock to do better than the others it covers, underweight worse. Their words, not Orin's.
How is it priced next to the companies it is compared to?
Priced at 40.6× its last 12 months of profit. Only 2 of the 4 companies it is compared to made a profit (BELFB 55.9×, ONDS 69.1×), so there is no typical P/E.
| Company | Market value | P/E | EV/EBITDA | Gross margin | Net margin | ROE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KNKnowles Corporation | $3B | 40.6× | 22.0× | 42.6% | 10.8% | 9% |
| AAOIApplied Optoelectronics, Inc. | $4B | lost money | n/m | 28.8% | −4.4% | −2% |
| BELFBBel Fuse Inc. | $3B | 55.9× | 19.1× | 39.5% | 8.1% | 11% |
| ONDSOndas Holdings Inc. | $4B | 69.1× | n/m | 43.7% | 96.2% | 19% |
| SONOSonos, Inc. | $2B | lost money | 16.8× | 46.5% | −2.5% | −10% |
- AAOI, SONO: lost money over the last 12 months, so no P/E.
- AAOI, ONDS: EV/EBITDA is not meaningful (n/m) — its cash exceeds its market value plus debt, or the business lost money before depreciation.
- The list of companies is the data vendor's choice, so it can include a company a person would not have picked.
Market value: the share price times the number of shares — what the whole company is priced at.
P/E: the share price divided by one year of profit per share — roughly how many years of today's profit the price pays for. A company that loses money has no P/E.
EV/EBITDA: the price of the whole company (its shares plus its debt, minus its cash) divided by one year of operating profit before interest, tax and write-downs.
Gross margin: the share of each $1 of sales left after the direct cost of making what was sold.
Net margin: the share of each $1 of sales kept as profit after every cost. Below zero, the company lost money.
ROE: return on equity: one year of profit as a share of the shareholders' money in the business (its book value).
Is it priced high or low compared with its own past?
Priced at 40.6× its last 12 months of profit (Tue 27 Oct close). It has no full fiscal year on file since its history starts, so there is nothing of its own to compare with.
- Now40.6×
P/E: the share price divided by one year of profit per share — roughly how many years of today's profit the price pays for. A company that loses money has no P/E.
Fiscal year (FY): the company's own 12-month accounting year, which need not match the calendar year.
How has its sector been priced?
Technology companies on the NYSE were priced at a typical 39.5× their yearly profit (Tue 27 Oct close).
- Now39.5×
- Each year is the middle of that calendar year's daily sector P/E; "Now" is the Tue 27 Oct close figure, the same one in the table above.
Sector P/E: the middle P/E of the companies in the same sector on the same stock exchange, as the data vendor works it out each day.
What does a cash-flow model say a share is worth?
A standard cash-flow model puts it at $5 a share — 86% below the $33.40 price it was computed against (27 Oct).
| Model | Value a share | Against the price then |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | $5 | 86% below $33.40 |
| Levered | $8 | 77% below $33.40 |
Discounted cash flow: a model's estimate of what the company is worth today, from the cash it is forecast to make in future years. Small changes in the forecast move it a lot, and it says little about a company that loses money.
Standard / levered: two versions of the cash-flow model: the standard one counts the cash before the company pays its lenders, the levered one after.