Zacks Research Upgrades Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) to “Strong-Buy”

Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ:VECO) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on VECO. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Veeco Instruments from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Veeco Instruments in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Veeco Instruments in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $28.17.

Veeco Instruments Price Performance

Shares of VECO stock opened at $32.47 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $31.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.47. The firm has a market cap of $1.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.03 and a beta of 1.17. Veeco Instruments has a 1-year low of $16.92 and a 1-year high of $35.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 4.75 and a quick ratio of 3.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO William John Miller sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $800,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 464,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,865,376. This represents a 5.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VECO. Inspire Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Veeco Instruments in the 3rd quarter worth about $3,675,000. Old West Investment Management LLC grew its position in Veeco Instruments by 129.1% in the 3rd quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC now owns 67,632 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,058,000 after purchasing an additional 38,114 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Veeco Instruments in the second quarter valued at approximately $679,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 133.3% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 76,895 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,563,000 after buying an additional 43,941 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TradeLink Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Veeco Instruments during the second quarter valued at approximately $296,000. 98.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.