Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $28.1667.

VECO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Zacks Research upgraded Veeco Instruments from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Citigroup lifted 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. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Veeco Instruments in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Veeco Instruments in a research note on Thursday, February 26th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO William John Miller sold 50,000 shares of Veeco Instruments stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.62, for a total value of $1,581,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 414,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,107,849.66. This trade represents a 10.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 2.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Veeco Instruments

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Veeco Instruments by 75.6% in the second quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,366 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,019 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in Veeco Instruments by 125.6% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,461 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 1,370 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Veeco Instruments in the fourth quarter worth about $77,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Veeco Instruments in the third quarter worth about $91,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in Veeco Instruments by 16,961.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 3,583 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 3,562 shares in the last quarter. 98.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Veeco Instruments Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VECO opened at $51.73 on Monday. Veeco Instruments has a 1 year low of $18.23 and a 1 year high of $53.43. The firm has a market cap of $3.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 87.68 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 stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $35.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.07.

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.