Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) Hits New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO) reached a new 52-week low on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $18.72 and last traded at $18.91, with a volume of 252732 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.50.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on VECO. Barclays decreased their price objective on Veeco Instruments from $30.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Veeco Instruments from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on shares of Veeco Instruments from $35.00 to $29.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $35.00 price target (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Veeco Instruments in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Veeco Instruments from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Veeco Instruments presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.43.

Veeco Instruments Stock Down 3.6 %

The company has a quick ratio of 2.69, a current ratio of 3.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $22.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.78.

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The semiconductor company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.14). Veeco Instruments had a return on equity of 9.38% and a net margin of 10.28%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Veeco Instruments Inc. will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Veeco Instruments news, CFO John P. Kiernan sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 72,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,780,455.42. This represents a 3.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veeco Instruments

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Veeco Instruments by 257.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,276 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 919 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Veeco Instruments by 396.2% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,295 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares during the period. 272 Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Veeco Instruments during the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,000. Sciencast Management LP acquired a new stake in Veeco Instruments during the fourth quarter worth approximately $204,000. Finally, FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Veeco Instruments during the fourth quarter worth approximately $220,000. 98.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Veeco Instruments Company Profile

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.