Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) Trading Up 6.9% – Here’s What Happened

Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO) shares rose 6.9% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $44.17 and last traded at $43.54. Approximately 310,213 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 957,838 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.72.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Veeco Instruments in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Citigroup boosted their price target on Veeco Instruments from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Veeco Instruments in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Veeco Instruments from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $28.17.

Veeco Instruments Trading Up 2.5%

The stock has a market cap of $2.52 billion, a PE ratio of 70.72 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 3.20 and a current ratio of 4.75. The business has a 50-day moving average of $32.73 and a 200 day moving average of $31.18.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO William John Miller sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.62, for a total transaction of $1,581,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 414,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,107,849.66. This represents a 10.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Veeco Instruments by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,663,310 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $233,195,000 after acquiring an additional 62,016 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Veeco Instruments by 4.9% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,396,804 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $69,023,000 after purchasing an additional 157,978 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Veeco Instruments by 9.7% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 3,215,031 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $65,329,000 after purchasing an additional 284,716 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Veeco Instruments by 1.1% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,481,803 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $75,521,000 after purchasing an additional 26,248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY increased its holdings in Veeco Instruments by 1.3% in the second quarter. Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY now owns 2,410,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $48,971,000 after buying an additional 30,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.46% of the company’s stock.

Veeco Instruments Company Profile

Veeco Instruments Inc (NASDAQ: VECO) is a leading supplier of process equipment for the semiconductor, data storage, wireless communications, power electronics and advanced packaging industries. The company designs, manufactures and services precision tools used to grow, deposit and etch thin films on substrates, enabling the fabrication of chips, light-emitting diodes (LEDs), micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and high-density storage devices. Veeco’s platforms are deployed across fabrication facilities worldwide, where they support key processes in materials science and device manufacturing.

Veeco’s product portfolio spans molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), atomic layer deposition (ALD), ion beam etch and deposition, and high-precision wet and dry etch systems.