Veeco Instruments Inc. $VECO Holdings Lifted by UBS Group AG

Key Points

• UBS Group AG increased its Veeco Instruments stake by 11% in Q4, buying 28,967 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 292,360 shares worth about $8.36 million.
• Several analysts turned more constructive on Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ: VECO), including Citigroup raising its price target to $60 and Northland Securities lifting earnings estimates, even as the broader consensus rating remains Hold.
• Veeco reported weaker-than-expected quarterly results, posting $0.14 EPS versus the $0.20 estimate and revenue of $158.34 million, while insiders also continued selling shares, including CEO William John Miller and Director Gordon Hunter.

UBS Group AG increased its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO - Free Report) by 11.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 292,360 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 28,967 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned 0.48% of Veeco Instruments worth $8,356,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 0.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,663,310 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $233,195,000 after buying an additional 62,016 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 4.9% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,396,804 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $69,023,000 after buying an additional 157,978 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 9.7% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 3,215,031 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $65,329,000 after buying an additional 284,716 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 1.1% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,481,803 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $75,521,000 after buying an additional 26,248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY grew its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 1.3% during the second quarter. Paradigm Capital Management Inc. NY now owns 2,410,000 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $48,971,000 after buying an additional 30,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.46% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO William John Miller sold 100,000 shares of Veeco Instruments stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.55, for a total transaction of $5,955,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 419,570 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,985,393.50. This trade represents a 19.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gordon Hunter sold 29,532 shares of Veeco Instruments stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,754,496.12. Following the sale, the director directly owned 52,676 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,129,481.16. The trade was a 35.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 187,278 shares of company stock valued at $9,745,651. Insiders own 2.70% of the company's stock.

Veeco Instruments News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Veeco Instruments this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Northland Securities raised its FY2026 EPS estimate for Veeco Instruments to $1.10 from $1.04, suggesting slightly stronger near-term earnings than previously expected.
• Positive Sentiment: The firm also boosted multiple forward estimates, including FY2027 EPS to $2.69 from $1.17, which points to a much stronger long-term earnings outlook for Veeco Instruments (VECO).
• Positive Sentiment: Northland increased quarterly estimates across 2026 and 2027, reinforcing the view that earnings momentum for the semiconductor equipment maker is improving.
• Neutral Sentiment: Another report said Veeco’s price target was increased by 43.08% to $47.43, adding to the more constructive analyst tone around the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Director Gordon Hunter sold 29,532 shares worth about $1.75 million, and he also sold shares earlier in the week. Insider selling can sometimes weigh on investor sentiment, even if it does not necessarily change the company’s fundamentals.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Veeco Instruments from $40.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research downgraded Veeco Instruments from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Veeco Instruments in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Veeco Instruments from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Veeco Instruments presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $37.00.

Veeco Instruments Price Performance

VECO opened at $58.64 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 154.32 and a beta of 1.36. Veeco Instruments Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.85 and a 1 year high of $65.43. The company has a current ratio of 4.23, a quick ratio of 2.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $41.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $34.52.

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The semiconductor company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $158.34 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.07 million. Veeco Instruments had a net margin of 3.53% and a return on equity of 3.49%. Veeco Instruments's revenue for the quarter was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.37 EPS. Veeco Instruments has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.200-0.320 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 1.500-1.850 EPS. Analysts forecast that Veeco Instruments Inc. will post 1.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Veeco Instruments Company Profile

Veeco Instruments Inc NASDAQ: VECO is a leading supplier of process equipment for the semiconductor, data storage, wireless communications, power electronics and advanced packaging industries. The company designs, manufactures and services precision tools used to grow, deposit and etch thin films on substrates, enabling the fabrication of chips, light-emitting diodes (LEDs), micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and high-density storage devices. Veeco's platforms are deployed across fabrication facilities worldwide, where they support key processes in materials science and device manufacturing.

Veeco's product portfolio spans molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), atomic layer deposition (ALD), ion beam etch and deposition, and high-precision wet and dry etch systems.

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