What: Shares of acoustic component technologist Knowles Corp (KN +2.38%) were down 11.5% at 11 a.m. EST on Friday after its quarterly results and current-quarter guidance disappointed Wall Street.
So what: Knowles' Q4 results managed to top estimates -- adjusted EPS of $0.34 topped the consensus by $0.22 on a revenue increase of 8.5% -- but downbeat guidance for the current-quarter is forcing analysts to quickly recalibrate their growth estimates going forward. Management also announced plans to sell the speaker and receiver product line in its mobile consumer electronics segment, suggesting that its near-term results might be dampened by hefty non-recurring restructuring costs.
Now what: Management now sees Q1 EPS of $0.01-$0.07 on revenue of $170 million-$190 million vs. the consensus of $0.09 and $265.1 million, respectively. "As we enter 2016, we plan to focus on businesses where we believe we have strong competitive advantage to sustain long-term revenue growth," said President and CEO Jeffrey Niew. "We expect our leading position in microphones, intelligent audio and hearing health, combined with stable sales of precision devices will drive top-line growth and strong operating margins in the future." More importantly, with the stock now off more than 50% from its 52-week highs and trading at a cheapish single-digit forward P/E, the downside might be limited enough to bet on that optimism.
