Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) Sets New 52-Week Low After Earnings Miss

Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as low as $23.00 and last traded at $23.37, with a volume of 15704 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $23.68.

The semiconductor company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.14). Veeco Instruments had a net margin of 11.34% and a return on equity of 10.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on VECO. Benchmark decreased their price target on shares of Veeco Instruments from $42.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $35.00 target price (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Veeco Instruments in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup raised Veeco Instruments from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $33.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Veeco Instruments from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Veeco Instruments from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Veeco Instruments currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.00.

Insider Transactions at Veeco Instruments

In other news, CFO John P. Kiernan sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total transaction of $61,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 72,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,780,455.42. This trade represents a 3.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Veeco Instruments

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wealthfront Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Veeco Instruments during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,676,000. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Veeco Instruments by 50.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,640,649 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $87,485,000 after buying an additional 883,815 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Veeco Instruments in the 4th quarter valued at $14,373,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Veeco Instruments by 20.1% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,216,351 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $73,428,000 after acquiring an additional 371,221 shares during the period. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its stake in Veeco Instruments by 37.3% during the third quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 1,175,759 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $38,953,000 after acquiring an additional 319,451 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.46% of the company’s stock.

Veeco Instruments Stock Down 0.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 3.54 and a quick ratio of 2.41. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.52 and a beta of 1.13.

About Veeco Instruments

Veeco Instruments Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, sells, and supports semiconductor and thin film process equipment primarily to make electronic devices in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, China, Rest of the Asia-Pacific, and internationally. The company offers laser annealing, ion beam deposition and etch, metal organic chemical vapor deposition, single wafer wet processing and surface preparation, molecular beam epitaxy, advanced packaging lithography, atomic layer deposition, and other deposition systems.