Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) Hits New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $20.56 and last traded at $20.98, with a volume of 36099 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $21.31.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VECO. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Veeco Instruments from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Veeco Instruments from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $35.00 price target (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Veeco Instruments in a report on Friday, February 7th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on Veeco Instruments from $35.00 to $29.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Benchmark reduced their price objective on shares of Veeco Instruments from $38.00 to $31.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.43.

Veeco Instruments Stock Performance

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $25.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.75. The company has a current ratio of 3.98, a quick ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a PE ratio of 16.71 and a beta of 1.13.

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) last issued 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 net margin of 10.28% and a return on equity of 9.38%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Veeco Instruments Inc. will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Veeco Instruments

In related news, CFO John P. Kiernan sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.63, for a total value of $69,075.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 75,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,076,173.46. This represents a 3.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of VECO. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 919 shares during the period. 272 Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Veeco Instruments during the third quarter worth $50,000. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in Veeco Instruments by 46.8% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,088 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 666 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its position in Veeco Instruments by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,864 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $128,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Veeco Instruments by 3,213.1% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,804 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $145,000 after purchasing an additional 4,659 shares during the period. 98.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.