Handelsbanken Fonder AB Acquires New Shares in Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB purchased a new position in shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 15,500 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $415,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Veeco Instruments by 50.3% in the third 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. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Veeco Instruments by 20.1% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,216,351 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $73,428,000 after acquiring an additional 371,221 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its position in shares of Veeco Instruments by 37.3% in the third quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 1,175,759 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $38,953,000 after acquiring an additional 319,451 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of Veeco Instruments by 249.0% during the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 430,757 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $14,271,000 after acquiring an additional 307,348 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 165.0% during the third quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 370,917 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $12,288,000 after purchasing an additional 230,971 shares during the period. 98.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VECO shares. StockNews.com upgraded Veeco Instruments from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Veeco Instruments from $35.00 to $29.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $35.00 price target (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Veeco Instruments in a research note on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Veeco Instruments from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on shares of 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $32.43.

Veeco Instruments Stock Down 2.7 %

Shares of VECO stock traded down $0.59 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $20.72. 339,431 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 659,672. The company's 50-day moving average price is $25.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.75. The company has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.64 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 2.69, a current ratio of 3.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Veeco Instruments Inc. has a 12 month low of $20.51 and a 12 month high of $49.25.

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The semiconductor company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 analysts expect that Veeco Instruments Inc. will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Veeco Instruments

In other news, CFO John P. Kiernan sold 2,500 shares of Veeco Instruments stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total value of $61,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 72,642 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,780,455.42. The trade was a 3.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

Veeco Instruments 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.