# Knowles Cor (KN.US)

Canonical: https://gigainvestors.com/s/KN

Analysis as of: 2026-10-16T07:29:40.143Z. Financial observations: FY2011–FY2026.

Listing currency: USD. Reporting currency: USD.

## Verdict

Not a wonderful business

Quality tests for Buy: not passed (profit record: fail; earnings resilience is evidence only). Published buy qualification: no.

Share price: $34.57 per share; close as of 2026-10-15.

Estimated value: low $7.06 per share, central $7.98 per share, high $9.19 per share. Buy at or below the central value $7.98 per share. Valuation as of 2026-10-16T07:29:40.143Z; scenarios are not confidence intervals.

Expected annual return: 4.5% at the stated quote. About 4.5% a year at today's price (required return 10.0%). required return 10.0% a year (10% floor; US 10-year bond 5.1% + 4 points).

## Checklist

### understandable: pass

- 4 revenue declines in the last 10 years (informational)

- Financial history: 10 years

- Years with declining revenue: 4

- Years with a net loss: 2

- Operating margin variation: 0.28×

Chart: Operating margin; fiscal year observations.

- FY2017: 0.10×

- FY2018: 0.10×

- FY2019: 0.10×

- FY2020: 0.06×

- FY2021: 0.14×

- FY2022: 0.19×

- FY2023: 0.11×

- FY2024: 0.10×

- FY2025: 0.13×

- LTM to Jun 2026: 0.15×

### moat: fail

- ROIC median below threshold

- ROIC worst years below threshold (more than 1 bad year allowed)

- ROIC, median of available years: 11.5%

- ROIC, second-lowest year: 6.7%

- Typical minus recent gross margin: -1.6 pp

- Typical gross margin (annual median): 39.7%

- Recent gross margin (lower of latest and 3-year median): 41.2%

- Years with nonpositive capital: 0

- Capital spending / revenue: 5.5%

- ROIC including acquisitions, ten-year median: 3.5%

Chart: ROIC excluding acquisitions; fiscal year observations.

- FY2017: 14.0%

- FY2018: 19.5%

- FY2019: 13.2%

- FY2020: 7.0%

- FY2021: 21.4%

- FY2022: 8.5%

- FY2023: 5.1%

- FY2024: 6.7%

- FY2025: 10.3%

- LTM to Jun 2026: 12.8%

### economics: fail

- owner earnings cash conversion below threshold

- Cash conversion uses consolidated totals: No

- Owner earnings, five-year total: -$330M

- Net income, five-year total: -$403M

- Return on incremental invested capital: >100%

- Working capital / revenue, annual change: 1.6 pp

- Working capital / revenue, change between three-year averages: 8.9 pp

- Working capital / revenue, final three-year average: 33.5%

Chart: Owner earnings · five years; fiscal year observations.

- FY2021: $164M

- FY2022: -$408M

- FY2023: $81M

- FY2024: -$216M

- FY2025: $48M

### management: fail

- Historical market-dollar context (not the management verdict): 2016 to 2025 (9 years)

- potential debt-funded buybacks (informational)

- buybacks unrelated to price (informational)

- ROIC first 3 years vs last 3 years: 14.0% vs 6.7%

- Per-share earnings: -0.19 to 0.50 (three-year endpoint medians)

- acquisition spending exceeds half of ten-year net income with low and deteriorating ROIC

- Management verdict uses per-share economic progress: Yes

- Ordinary dilution, 10-year annual growth: 0.1%

- Ordinary dilution, 5-year annual growth: -1.1%

- Market cap gain: $329M

- Cumulative retained earnings: -$209M

- Diluted shares, 10-year annual growth: 0.1%

- Diluted shares, 5-year annual growth: -1.1%

- $1 test, starting fiscal year: FY2016

- $1 test, ending fiscal year: FY2025

- Per-share value change: $0.69

- Per-share value, starting three-year median: -$0.19

- Per-share value, ending three-year median: $0.50

- Buybacks concentrated in cheaper years (correlation): -0.07

- Average buyback yield: 1.7%

- Buyback history: 10 years

- Debt-funded buybacks: Yes

- Acquisition spending: $306M

- Cumulative net income, 10 years: -$292M

- ROIC, first three-year median: 14.0%

- ROIC, last three-year median: 6.7%

Chart: Earnings per share; fiscal year observations.

- FY2016: -$0.19

- FY2017: $0.07

- FY2018: $0.72

- FY2019: $0.53

- FY2020: $0.07

- FY2021: $1.59

- FY2022: -$4.63

- FY2023: $0.79

- FY2024: -$2.66

- FY2025: $0.50

### accounting: fail

- restructuring or one-time charges in at least three of five years

- stock compensation exceeds 15% of operating cash flow

- Sloan accruals: -6.6%

- Receivables to sales index (DSRI): 0.91×

- Restructuring years, last five: 5

- Stock compensation / operating cash flow: 24.9%

- Earnings backed by cash: Yes

- Operating cash / earnings: 2.58×

- Accounting red flags: 2

- Goodwill and intangibles / equity: 0.53×

Chart: Sloan accruals; fiscal year observations.

- FY2016: -8.2%

- FY2017: -5.6%

- FY2018: -2.1%

- FY2019: -4.5%

- FY2020: -7.3%

- FY2021: -1.8%

- FY2022: -43.6%

- FY2023: -3.4%

- FY2024: -33.1%

- FY2025: -6.6%

## Holders

- [John Rogers](https://gigainvestors.com/AI): tracked 13F investor; follow the investor page for holding quarter and amounts.

- [Dan Davidowitz](https://gigainvestors.com/pcm): tracked 13F investor; follow the investor page for holding quarter and amounts.

## Price story

Price needs cash profits to grow 20.2% a year for ten years · sales +7%

Story as of 2026-10-16T09:59:01.623Z; price observation 2026-10-15.

Price needs cash profits to grow 20.2% a year for ten years

### Sales · FY2025–2026

sales +7%; source https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1587523/000158752326000005/kn-20251231.htm; observed 2026-02-09.

- FY2017: $744M 

- FY2018: $827M 

- FY2019: $855M 

- FY2020: $764M 

- FY2021: $868M 

- FY2022: $479M 

- FY2023: $457M 

- FY2024: $554M 

- FY2025: $593M 

- FY2026: $635M 

### Gross margin · FY2026

gross margin 42.3%; source https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1587523/000158752326000005/kn-20251231.htm; observed 2026-02-09.

- FY2017: 38.2% 

- FY2018: 38.3% 

- FY2019: 37.9% 

- FY2020: 33.9% 

- FY2021: 39.3% 

- FY2022: 47.4% 

- FY2023: 43.8% 

- FY2024: 40.0% 

- FY2025: 41.2% 

- FY2026: 42.3% 

## Owner memo

Memo as of 2026-10-16T08:06:05.509Z.

### How it makes money

Operates in electronic components; annual sales are USD 593.2 million.

- Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1587523/000158752326000005/kn-20251231.htm (filed 2026-02-09); FY2025: revenue 593200000; grossProfit 244500000; margin = grossProfit / revenue.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16); KN.US: Knowles Corporation offers capacitors, radio frequency (RF) and microwave filters, balanced armature speakers, and medtech microphones in Asia, the United States, Europe, rest of Americas, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Precision Devices (PD) and Medtech & Specialty Audio (MSA). The PD segment focuses on the custom design and delivery of high performance capacitor products and RF solutions primarily serving the defense, industrial, medtech, and electrification/energy markets. The MSA segment designs and manufactures balanced armature speakers and microphones for the hearing health; and specialty audio applications that serve the medtech and industrial markets. The company manufactures and sells film, electrolytic, and mica capacitors that are used in medtech, defense, and industrial electrification applications. It serves the defense, medtech, electric vehicle, industrial, and communications markets through original equipment manufacturers, their contract manufacturers, suppliers, sales representatives, and distributors. Knowles Corporation was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Itasca, Illinois.

### Why customers stay

Margins ranged from 40% to 43.8% during 2023–25; it earns 11.5% on its capital.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); FY2023: grossProfit / revenue = 43.8%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); FY2024: grossProfit / revenue = 40%.

- Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1587523/000158752326000005/kn-20251231.htm (filed 2026-02-09); FY2025: grossProfit / revenue = 41.2%.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); 10-year return on capital observations [[2017,0.14038112522686025],[2018,0.19454589724859994],[2019,0.13189890111611466],[2020,0.06952880750334971],[2021,0.2142468733007069],[2022,0.08505145658829552],[2023,0.05129802699896158],[2024,0.06718632027818837],[2025,0.10271905127992022],[2026,0.12793531069295958]]; median 0.1153271809864399. ROIC follows the displayed moat series; financial companies use return on tangible equity.

### Where the cash goes

Paid dividends in 6 of 10 years; bought back USD 65 million of shares.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); FY2016: growth capex 0; upkeep 38700000; cash acquisitions 0; owner earnings 13600000. Growth capex plus acquisitions / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); FY2017: growth capex 0; upkeep 51600000; cash acquisitions 2500000; owner earnings 8200000. Growth capex plus acquisitions / owner earnings = 0.3048780487804878.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); FY2018: growth capex 21146640.66204296; upkeep 58953359.33795704; cash acquisitions 18000000; owner earnings 59546639.66204296. Growth capex plus acquisitions / owner earnings = 0.6574114153916959.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); FY2019: growth capex 0; upkeep 41200000; cash acquisitions 69300000; owner earnings 62300000. Growth capex plus acquisitions / owner earnings = 1.1123595505617978.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); FY2020: growth capex 0; upkeep 31900000; cash acquisitions 0; owner earnings 35300000. Growth capex plus acquisitions / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); FY2021: growth capex 0; upkeep 48600000; cash acquisitions 78500000; owner earnings 164300000. Growth capex plus acquisitions / owner earnings = 0.47778454047474134.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); FY2023: growth capex 0; upkeep 17200000; cash acquisitions 136900000; owner earnings 81400000. Growth capex plus acquisitions / owner earnings = 1.6818181818181819.

- Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1587523/000158752326000005/kn-20251231.htm (filed 2026-02-09); FY2025: growth capex 0; upkeep 32100000; cash acquisitions 0; owner earnings 48400000. Growth capex plus acquisitions / owner earnings = 0.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); Dividend observations: [[2016,0],[2017,0],[2018,0],[2019,3400000],[2020,1800000],[2021,25600000],[2022,7500000],[2023,220600000],[2024,0],[2025,6200000]]. Zero only counted when supported by a complete cash-flow statement.

- Source: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1587523/000158752326000005/kn-20251231.htm (filed 2026-02-09); FY2025: cash repurchases 65000000 USD.

### Are managers owners

Insiders own 1.8% of the company.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-10-16); KN.US SharesStats.PercentInsiders = 1.783 percentage points; cache date 2026-10-16.

### What the price says

The price assumes cash profits grow 20.2% yearly over ten years.

- Source: https://eodhd.com/financial-apis/stock-etfs-fundamental-data-feeds/ (filed 2026-02-09); Ten-year compound average after fade. Initial solved rate 0.28028947363126766. Price 34.57; FX 1; discount 0.1; same standard ten-year fade to terminal 0.03. FY2015 owner earnings/share -2.528960796900377 → FY2025 0.55. Closing-price date 2026-10-15.

## Monthly share-price history (USD per share)

- 2016-10: $14.94 per share

- 2016-11: $16.03 per share

- 2016-12: $16.71 per share

- 2017-01: $18.02 per share

- 2017-02: $18.93 per share

- 2017-03: $18.95 per share

- 2017-04: $17.73 per share

- 2017-05: $17.13 per share

- 2017-06: $16.92 per share

- 2017-07: $15.15 per share

- 2017-08: $14.67 per share

- 2017-09: $15.27 per share

- 2017-10: $16.56 per share

- 2017-11: $15.79 per share

- 2017-12: $14.66 per share

- 2018-01: $15.24 per share

- 2018-02: $14.44 per share

- 2018-03: $12.59 per share

- 2018-04: $12.80 per share

- 2018-05: $14.50 per share

- 2018-06: $15.30 per share

- 2018-07: $17.36 per share

- 2018-08: $18.13 per share

- 2018-09: $16.62 per share

- 2018-10: $16.18 per share

- 2018-11: $15.24 per share

- 2018-12: $13.31 per share

- 2019-01: $15.60 per share

- 2019-02: $16.28 per share

- 2019-03: $17.63 per share

- 2019-04: $18.88 per share

- 2019-05: $15.73 per share

- 2019-06: $18.31 per share

- 2019-07: $20.35 per share

- 2019-08: $20.28 per share

- 2019-09: $20.34 per share

- 2019-10: $21.58 per share

- 2019-11: $21.90 per share

- 2019-12: $21.15 per share

- 2020-01: $19.73 per share

- 2020-02: $16.62 per share

- 2020-03: $13.38 per share

- 2020-04: $15.55 per share

- 2020-05: $15.04 per share

- 2020-06: $15.26 per share

- 2020-07: $15.26 per share

- 2020-08: $15.06 per share

- 2020-09: $14.90 per share

- 2020-10: $14.25 per share

- 2020-11: $16.98 per share

- 2020-12: $18.43 per share

- 2021-01: $19.29 per share

- 2021-02: $20.79 per share

- 2021-03: $20.92 per share

- 2021-04: $20.90 per share

- 2021-05: $20.54 per share

- 2021-06: $19.74 per share

- 2021-07: $20.04 per share

- 2021-08: $20.00 per share

- 2021-09: $18.74 per share

- 2021-10: $20.84 per share

- 2021-11: $21.72 per share

- 2021-12: $23.35 per share

- 2022-01: $21.21 per share

- 2022-02: $21.78 per share

- 2022-03: $21.53 per share

- 2022-04: $18.52 per share

- 2022-05: $19.22 per share

- 2022-06: $17.33 per share

- 2022-07: $19.75 per share

- 2022-08: $15.15 per share

- 2022-09: $12.17 per share

- 2022-10: $13.75 per share

- 2022-11: $15.60 per share

- 2022-12: $16.42 per share

- 2023-01: $19.23 per share

- 2023-02: $16.98 per share

- 2023-03: $17.00 per share

- 2023-04: $16.88 per share

- 2023-05: $17.98 per share

- 2023-06: $18.06 per share

- 2023-07: $18.27 per share

- 2023-08: $16.03 per share

- 2023-09: $14.81 per share

- 2023-10: $12.99 per share

- 2023-11: $15.87 per share

- 2023-12: $17.91 per share

- 2024-01: $16.31 per share

- 2024-02: $16.34 per share

- 2024-03: $16.10 per share

- 2024-04: $15.83 per share

- 2024-05: $17.52 per share

- 2024-06: $17.26 per share

- 2024-07: $18.27 per share

- 2024-08: $18.45 per share

- 2024-09: $18.03 per share

- 2024-10: $17.32 per share

- 2024-11: $19.46 per share

- 2024-12: $19.93 per share

- 2025-01: $18.93 per share

- 2025-02: $16.59 per share

- 2025-03: $15.20 per share

- 2025-04: $15.74 per share

- 2025-05: $16.41 per share

- 2025-06: $17.62 per share

- 2025-07: $20.31 per share

- 2025-08: $21.35 per share

- 2025-09: $23.31 per share

- 2025-10: $23.61 per share

- 2025-11: $22.48 per share

- 2025-12: $21.43 per share

- 2026-01: $24.24 per share

- 2026-02: $27.17 per share

- 2026-03: $25.68 per share

- 2026-04: $31.19 per share

- 2026-05: $37.41 per share

- 2026-06: $41.48 per share

- 2026-07: $36.59 per share

- 2026-08: $34.18 per share

- 2026-09: $37.15 per share

- 2026-10: $34.57 per share

## Annual estimated value (USD per share)

- FY2016: low $2.24 per share, central $2.47 per share, high $2.78 per share

- FY2017: low $2.06 per share, central $2.20 per share, high $2.38 per share

- FY2018: low $1.72 per share, central $1.87 per share, high $2.07 per share

- FY2019: low $2.46 per share, central $2.70 per share, high $3.04 per share

- FY2020: low $5.58 per share, central $6.15 per share, high $6.91 per share

- FY2021: low $7.76 per share, central $8.75 per share, high $10.08 per share

- FY2022: low $4.48 per share, central $5.04 per share, high $5.78 per share

- FY2023: low $4.83 per share, central $5.37 per share, high $6.10 per share

- FY2024: low $4.42 per share, central $4.85 per share, high $5.42 per share

- FY2025: low $6.49 per share, central $7.32 per share, high $8.43 per share

Historical values use today's bond yield for every fiscal year

Historical values use today's FX rate into trading currency for every fiscal year

Historical values use current restated fundamentals and current commodity classification; they are not point-in-time estimates

## Sources

[Original 10-K filing](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1587523/000158752326000005/kn-20251231.htm); period 2025-12-31, filed 2026-02-09.

Estimates depend on assumptions and are not guarantees or investment advice. Underlying data remains subject to its source licenses; public reading does not grant bulk redistribution rights.