Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Key Points

• Veeco Instruments shares opened at $22.74, significantly higher than the previous close of $19.94, following an earnings report that outperformed analysts' expectations with $0.36 EPS compared to a consensus of $0.22.
• The company's revenue for the quarter was $166.10 million, exceeding analyst estimates of $151.31 million, although it was down 5.6% year-over-year.
• Several analysts have adjusted price targets for Veeco, with Goldman Sachs lowering their target from $27.00 to $20.00, while the stock maintains a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $30.00.

Shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $19.94, but opened at $22.74. Veeco Instruments shares last traded at $21.07, with a volume of 182,063 shares trading hands.

The semiconductor company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $166.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $151.31 million. Veeco Instruments had a net margin of 8.99% and a return on equity of 8.29%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.42 EPS.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on VECO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Veeco Instruments from $27.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Veeco Instruments from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Benchmark cut their price objective on shares of Veeco Instruments from $31.00 to $28.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $30.00.

Insider Activity at Veeco Instruments

In other Veeco Instruments news, SVP Adrian Devasahayam sold 11,010 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at $1,829,707. This represents a 10.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Veeco Instruments

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Veeco Instruments by 396.2% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,295 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,034 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Veeco Instruments during the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of Veeco Instruments by 213.9% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,139 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 2,139 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its position in shares of Veeco Instruments by 33.6% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,366 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 847 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Veeco Instruments by 49,728.6% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,488 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $71,000 after buying an additional 3,481 shares in the last quarter. 98.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Veeco Instruments Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 4.44, a quick ratio of 3.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.27 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83 and a beta of 1.12. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $20.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.19.

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.

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