Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Buys 17,254 Shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO - Free Report) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 508,770 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after acquiring an additional 17,254 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.90% of Veeco Instruments worth $13,635,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Veeco Instruments by 46.8% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,088 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 666 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 257.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,276 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 919 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in Veeco Instruments by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 14,886 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $399,000 after buying an additional 1,040 shares during the last quarter. 272 Capital LP purchased a new stake in Veeco Instruments in the third quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Veeco Instruments by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,589 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $284,000 after acquiring an additional 1,835 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.46% of the company's stock.

Veeco Instruments Trading Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ VECO traded down $0.06 on Tuesday, hitting $21.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 469,870 shares, compared to its average volume of 681,864. The company has a current ratio of 3.98, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Veeco Instruments Inc. has a 52-week low of $20.05 and a 52-week high of $49.25. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $23.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.36. The firm has a market cap of $1.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.51 and a beta of 1.24.

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. 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 10.28% and a return on equity of 9.38%. Research analysts predict that Veeco Instruments Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Veeco Instruments

In other Veeco Instruments news, CFO John P. Kiernan sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total value of $61,275.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 72,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,780,455.42. This represents a 3.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on VECO. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Veeco Instruments from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target 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. StockNews.com upgraded Veeco Instruments from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Benchmark lowered their target price on Veeco Instruments from $38.00 to $31.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $35.00 price target (down from $40.00) on shares of Veeco Instruments in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $32.43.

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.