Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) Hits New 1-Year Low – Should You Sell?

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on VECO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Veeco Instruments from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on Veeco Instruments from $35.00 to $29.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Oppenheimer restated 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. Benchmark dropped their price objective on Veeco Instruments from $38.00 to $31.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Veeco Instruments from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.43.

Veeco Instruments Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.71 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 3.98 and a quick ratio of 2.69. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $25.56 and its 200-day moving average is $28.75.

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The semiconductor company reported $0.26 earnings per share 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%. Analysts predict that Veeco Instruments Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO John P. Kiernan sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total transaction of $61,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 72,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,780,455.42. This trade represents a 3.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 257.4% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,276 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 919 shares in the last quarter. 272 Capital LP bought a new stake in Veeco Instruments in the 3rd quarter valued at $50,000. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Veeco Instruments by 46.8% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,088 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 666 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,864 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Veeco Instruments by 3,213.1% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,804 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $145,000 after purchasing an additional 4,659 shares in the last quarter. 98.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.