Knowles

KN · NYSE · Information Technology · Financials, fiscal 2016 to 2025

KN · Last close · November 6, 2026

$31.27

Knowles' revenue rose 7.2% to $593 million in fiscal 2025. Its operating margin was 11.8%, up from 9.4% a year earlier. It paid out $65 million in dividends and buybacks. The diluted share count fell 2.3%.

Knowles Corporation Latest fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 10-K filed February 9, 2026 · 0001587523-26-000005 Updated November 5, 2026

Revenue

$593M

7.2%

Operating margin

11.8%

2.5 pts

Net income

$44M

Free cash flow

—

Return on capital

6.7%

3.3 pts

Market cap

$2.7B

Nov 6 close

P/E

38.1x

On $0.82 EPS, 4 qtrs

Operating margin is operating income as a share of revenue. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending. Return on capital is after-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash. Market cap is the last closing share price times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate. P/E is the last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters, or the latest fiscal year where the quarters aren't available; there is none when the company made a loss.

About these figures. Knowles' long-term debt already includes the part due within a year, and the separate short-term borrowings its notes show are that same part at face value, so debt is its long-term debt total alone. The SEC's structured data has no full-year figure for Knowles' cash from operations, so cash from operations, free cash flow and the ratios built on them are blank for fiscal years; the quarterly figures are shown. Knowles' 2025 and 2026 filings restate 2023 revenue to US$456.8 million (first reported as US$707.6 million), while the first two quarters of 2023 stay as first reported, so the four quarters of fiscal 2023 add up to more than the year.

Charts show fiscal years, from the 10-K filings.

What Knowles does

Knowles designs and makes specialty electronic components: capacitors, radio frequency (RF) filters, microphones and balanced armature speakers. Capacitors store and release electrical charge, and RF filters let only chosen radio signals through. Its parts go into defense, medical technology, industrial and electrification and energy products. The company was founded in 1946 and is based in Itasca, Illinois. It has facilities in 11 countries.

It has two segments. Precision Devices makes high-voltage, high-temperature and high-reliability capacitors and RF filtering products, mostly for defense and industrial customers. Medtech & Specialty Audio makes small speakers and microphones for hearing health manufacturers and other specialty audio uses, working with customers on size, frequency range and low power needs.

Knowles says it designs custom products with customers and then makes them at scale, and that it grows by expanding in markets it finds profitable, through its own efforts and through acquisitions.

Its biggest risks, as it describes them

Getting a large part of its revenue from a small number of device makers and distributors.
Depending on U.S. government contracts for much of Precision Devices, which come with strict rules.
Reliance on specialized suppliers for components it may not be able to replace.
Growth plans and acquisitions that may not work out or be integrated well.
Product defects that could lead to costs and harm to its business.

From Knowles's annual report on Form 10-K, filed February 9, 2026, in our words; the 10-K has the full description and every risk factor. Updated with each new annual report.

Income statement

Revenue and net income

US$ billions, fiscal years; net losses in red. Revenue on the left axis, net income on the right; zero is the same line on both.

Revenue (left axis)Net income (right axis)

Gross profit, R&D and operating income

US$ billions, fiscal years. Gross profit is revenue minus the cost of what was sold; research and development is one of the costs paid from it; what remains after all operating costs is operating income. Losses in red.

Gross profitResearch and developmentOperating income

Margins

Percent of revenue

GrossOperatingNetFree cash flow

From fiscal 2017 to 2025, earnings per share fell 4.9% a year and net income 5.3% a year, while buybacks cut the share count by 3%.

Diluted earnings per share

US$ per share, fiscal years, restated for any stock splits; loss years in red.

Returns on capital

Return on capital and on equity

Percent. Return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business (debt plus equity, minus cash); return on equity is net income over shareholders' equity. Both use the average of opening and closing balances.

Return on capitalReturn on equity

Balance sheet

Cash and debt

US$ billions, at each fiscal year end. Debt includes finance leases.

Cash and short-term investmentsDebt

Assets, liabilities and equity

US$ billions, at each fiscal year end. Assets equal liabilities plus equity; negative equity in red.

Total assetsTotal liabilitiesShareholders' equity

Debt and liquidity ratios

Times. Debt to equity, current assets over current liabilities, and net debt over EBITDA (a full year's).

Debt to equityCurrent ratioNet debt to EBITDA

Five years at a glance

Fiscal year end	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Cash and short-term investments	69	48	87	130	54
Debt incl. finance leases	76	49	273	203	115
Net debt (negative means net cash)	7	1	186	73	60
Net debt to EBITDA	0.0x	0.0x	2.1x	0.7x	0.6x
Debt to equity	0.1x	0.1x	0.3x	0.3x	0.1x
Interest coverage	15.7x	25.2x	33.4x	6.9x	16.7x
Current ratio	2.3x	3.7x	2.6x	1.8x	2.8x
Quick ratio	1.4x	1.9x	1.8x	1.2x	1.6x

US$ millions unless stated, at each fiscal year end. Net debt to EBITDA is debt minus cash, divided by operating income before depreciation and amortization: roughly how many years of those earnings the net debt equals. Debt to equity is debt as a multiple of shareholders' equity. Interest coverage is operating income divided by interest expense. The current ratio is current assets over current liabilities; the quick ratio leaves out inventory.

Cash flow

Cash from operations, capital spending and free cash flow

US$ billions, fiscal years. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; negative years in red.

Cash from operationsCapital spendingFree cash flow

Stock-based compensation and buybacks

US$ billions, fiscal years. Shares paid to employees (stock-based compensation, a cost that uses no cash) against cash spent buying shares back. Buybacks that only match it leave the share count roughly where it was.

Stock-based compensationShare buybacks

Dividends and buybacks

US$ billions, cash paid in each fiscal year

DividendsShare buybacks

Diluted share count

Weighted-average diluted shares, millions

Projections

Project Knowles' revenue, net income and earnings per share five years ahead in a bull, a base and a bear case with your own figures, and see the share prices your P/E estimates give them, or value it with a discounted cash flow model. Every projected figure is yours: it is not a forecast of ours.

Open Knowles' projections

What Knowles says to expect

Full year 2026: revenue growthAdditionally, at the mid-point of our fourth quarter guided range, full year 2026 revenue is expected to grow 16%.

The company's own words, from its earnings release (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99), filed October 22, 2026. They are its expectations, not ours, and not a forecast or price target from The Filing Desk. Replaced when the next release is out.

Insider trades

Over the 12 months between November 7, 2025 and November 6, 2026, no insider bought Knowles shares on the open market, and 8 insiders sold $25.0 million, $15.7 million of it under trading plans set up in advance.

Buys and sells by month

US$ millions, open-market purchases (up) and sales (down) by officers, directors and 10% owners in each month.

BoughtSold

Date	Insider	Trade	Shares	Price	Value	Filing
Aug 17, 2026	Cheryl L ShaversDirector	Sold plan	6,618	$39.27	$259,891	Form 4
Aug 14, 2026	Jeffrey NiewPresident & CEO, Director	Sold plan	6,951	$38.00	$264,138	Form 4
Aug 13, 2026	Jeffrey NiewPresident & CEO, Director	Sold plan	43,049	$38.69	$1.7 million	Form 4
Aug 13, 2026	John S. AndersonSenior Vice President & CFO	Sold plan	10,000	$38.84	$388,400	Form 4
Aug 12, 2026	Jeffrey NiewPresident & CEO, Director	Sold plan	150,000	$39.07	$5.9 million	Form 4
Aug 12, 2026	John S. AndersonSenior Vice President & CFO	Sold plan	30,000	$39.07	$1.2 million	Form 4
Jul 27, 2026	Raymond D. CabreraSVP, Chief HR Officer	Sold	6,178	$36.28	$224,138	Form 4
May 27, 2026	Daniel J. GieseckeSenior Vice President & COO	Sold plan	20,201	$37.32	$753,903	Form 4
May 5, 2026	Jeffrey NiewPresident & CEO, Director	Sold	142,857	$33.25	$4.7 million	Form 4
Apr 30, 2026	Air A. Bastarrica Jr.Vice President, Controller	Sold	3,623	$30.91	$111,987	Form 4
Apr 29, 2026	Air A. Bastarrica Jr.Vice President, Controller	Sold	2,153	$29.96	$64,504	Form 4
Apr 28, 2026	Air A. Bastarrica Jr.Vice President, Controller	Sold	1,962	$30.26	$59,370	Form 4

The latest 12 of 29 trades. Open-market purchases and sales by officers, directors and 10% owners, from their Form 4 filings with the SEC: one row per person, day and filing, at the day's average price. Grants, option exercises and shares withheld for tax aren't counted. Insiders buy and sell for many reasons, such as taxes, spreading their savings or a plan set up months earlier, so a trade on its own says little about where a company is heading. For information only, not investment advice. Insider trades at all companies

Indicators

Four widely used measures, worked out from the company's filings. The cutoffs are the ones their authors or users go by, not a verdict of ours.

Indicator	FY23	FY24	FY25
Piotroski F-score	—	—	—
Rule of 40	—	—	—
Altman Z''	3.08	1.67	2.80
Accruals ratio	—	—	—

Piotroski F-score: how many of nine simple tests of profitability, funding and efficiency the company passed in the year (Piotroski, 2000); 8 or 9 is strong, 0 to 2 weak. Rule of 40: revenue growth plus free cash flow margin; software investors treat 40% or more as the bar. Altman Z'': working capital, retained earnings, operating income and equity weighed against assets and liabilities (Altman, 1995); Altman puts above 2.6 in the safe zone and below 1.1 in the distress zone. Accruals ratio: net income minus cash from operations, over average total assets; lower means profit is backed by cash.

The nine F-score tests

Test	FY23	FY24	FY25
Net income is positive	Pass	Fail	Pass
Cash from operations is positive	—	—	—
Return on assets rose	Pass	Fail	Pass
Cash from operations exceeds net income	—	—	—
Debt fell relative to assets	Fail	Pass	Pass
Current ratio rose	Fail	Fail	Pass
Share count didn't rise	Pass	Pass	Pass
Gross margin rose	Fail	Fail	Pass
Revenue rose relative to assets	Pass	Fail	Pass
F-score	—	—	—

Companies that report no gross profit are scored on the other eight.

Compare

Put Knowles side by side with any other company we cover: revenue, growth, margins, cash flow and returns, with ten years of charts.

Similar companies

Company	Year	Revenue growth	Operating margin	Free cash flow margin	Return on capital	Net debt to EBITDA	F-score	Compare
Knowles	FY25	7.2%	11.8%	—	6.7%	0.6x	—
Bel Fuse	FY25	26.3%	16.4%	10.2%	15.1%	1.0x	—	Compare
Rogers	FY25	−2.3%	−5.5%	8.8%	−3.4%	−20.2x	4	Compare
Methode Electronics	FY26	−2.8%	0.9%	1.5%	0.8%	2.8x	5	Compare
nLight	FY25	31.6%	−10.2%	4.7%	−20.1%	—	5	Compare

Each company's latest fiscal year. Fiscal years end in different months, so the periods don't line up exactly. Free cash flow margin is free cash flow as a share of revenue. Net debt to EBITDA is explained under the balance sheet, and the F-score under Indicators.

10 years of figures

Fiscal year	FY16	FY17	FY18	FY19	FY20	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Income statement
Revenue	756	744	827	855	764	868	479	457	554	593
Revenue growth	0.3%	−1.5%	11.1%	3.4%	−10.6%	13.6%	−44.9%	−4.6%	21.2%	7.2%
Gross profit	296	286	323	328	271	360	227	204	235	256
Research and development	92	93	101	97	93	93	29	32	40	40
Operating income	45	40	78	81	29	116	91	43	52	70
Net income	−42	68	68	49	7	150	−430	72	−238	44
Diluted EPS (US$)	−0.47	0.75	0.74	0.53	0.07	1.59	−4.63	0.79	−2.64	0.50
Diluted shares (millions)	89	90	91	93	93	95	93	92	90	88
Cash flow
Cash from operations	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Capital expenditure	39	52	80	41	32	49	32	17	14	32
Free cash flow	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Dividends paid	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Share buybacks	0	0	0	0	16	44	44	48	54	65
Acquisitions	0	2	18	69	0	78	1	137	0	0
Stock-based compensation	22	25	27	25	17	32	29	29	23	28
Balance sheet at fiscal year end
Cash and short-term investments	63	112	74	78	148	69	48	87	130	54
Debt incl. finance leases	298	193	158	166	173	76	49	273	203	115
Total assets	1,515	1,550	1,548	1,655	1,655	1,732	1,184	1,463	1,118	1,051
Total liabilities	507	418	336	366	351	272	191	429	362	275
Shareholders' equity	1,008	1,132	1,212	1,288	1,304	1,460	993	1,034	756	776
Margins and ratios
Gross margin	39.1%	38.4%	39.0%	38.4%	35.5%	41.4%	47.4%	44.6%	42.4%	43.2%
Operating margin	6.0%	5.4%	9.4%	9.5%	3.8%	13.3%	19.0%	9.5%	9.4%	11.8%
Net margin	−5.6%	9.2%	8.2%	5.7%	0.9%	17.3%	−89.8%	15.8%	−43.0%	7.5%
Free cash flow margin	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Rule of 40 (growth + FCF margin)	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Return on capital	2.4%	1.6%	6.2%	4.6%	1.1%	8.3%	5.6%	3.9%	3.4%	6.7%
Return on equity	−4.2%	6.4%	5.8%	3.9%	0.5%	10.9%	−35.1%	7.1%	−26.6%	5.8%
Return on assets	−2.6%	4.5%	4.4%	3.1%	0.4%	8.9%	−29.5%	5.5%	−18.4%	4.1%
Net debt to EBITDA	2.0x	0.8x	0.7x	0.7x	0.3x	0.0x	0.0x	2.1x	0.7x	0.6x

US$ millions unless stated. Where a later 10-K restated a year, the latest filed figure is shown. Download all figures (CSV, US$ millions)

Source: Knowles' Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR. For information only, not investment advice. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with Knowles.