Sei Investments Co. Sells 45,938 Shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO)

Sei Investments Co. decreased its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO - Free Report) by 69.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,060 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after selling 45,938 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co.'s holdings in Veeco Instruments were worth $538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in VECO. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Veeco Instruments by 257.4% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,276 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 919 shares during the period. 272 Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Veeco Instruments in the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,000. Sciencast Management LP bought a new stake in Veeco Instruments in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Inceptionr LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Veeco Instruments during the fourth quarter worth about $263,000. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,589 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 1,835 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.46% of the company's stock.

Veeco Instruments Stock Performance

VECO traded up $0.18 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $19.42. 48,903 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 721,659. 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 firm has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.63 and a beta of 1.12. Veeco Instruments Inc. has a one year low of $16.92 and a one year high of $49.25. The stock's fifty day moving average is $21.64 and its 200 day moving average is $25.99.

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Veeco Instruments Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on VECO. Benchmark decreased their price target 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. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $35.00 price target (down from $40.00) on shares of Veeco Instruments in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays cut their price objective 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. Citigroup decreased their price target on Veeco Instruments from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Veeco Instruments from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $32.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Veeco Instruments

In other Veeco Instruments news, CFO John P. Kiernan sold 2,500 shares of Veeco Instruments stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total value of $61,275.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

About Veeco Instruments

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.