Public Sector Pension Investment Board Purchases 42,258 Shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. $VECO

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Veeco Instruments Inc. by 29.9% during the first quarter, holding 183,710 shares valued at approximately $3.69 million.
• Veeco Instruments reported quarterly earnings of $0.36 per share, surpassing analyst expectations of $0.22, with revenues totaling $166.10 million despite a 5.6% year-over-year decline.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on the stock, with target prices ranging from $20.00 to $30.00, and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO - Free Report) by 29.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 183,710 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 42,258 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned about 0.32% of Veeco Instruments worth $3,689,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VECO. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Veeco Instruments by 396.2% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,295 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Veeco Instruments by 213.9% in the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,139 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 2,139 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in shares of Veeco Instruments by 33.6% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,366 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 847 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Veeco Instruments by 75.9% in the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,672 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 1,584 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Veeco Instruments by 342.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,807 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $177,000 after purchasing an additional 6,817 shares in the last quarter. 98.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Veeco Instruments Trading Up 5.2%

NASDAQ VECO traded up $1.25 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $25.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 781,113 shares, compared to its average volume of 919,992. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $21.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.00. The stock has a market cap of $1.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.76 and a beta of 1.12. Veeco Instruments Inc. has a 52 week low of $16.92 and a 52 week high of $38.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 5.10 and a quick ratio of 3.43.

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The semiconductor company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $166.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $151.31 million. Veeco Instruments had a net margin of 8.65% and a return on equity of 7.38%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.42 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Veeco Instruments Inc. will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Veeco Instruments

In other Veeco Instruments news, SVP Adrian Devasahayam sold 11,010 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.50, for a total transaction of $225,705.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 89,254 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,829,707. This trade represents a 10.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VECO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Veeco Instruments from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Veeco Instruments from $27.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Veeco Instruments from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Benchmark dropped their price objective on shares of Veeco Instruments from $31.00 to $28.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Veeco Instruments currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $27.33.

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.