Granahan Investment Management LLC Sells 91,033 Shares of Veeco Instruments Inc. $VECO

Granahan Investment Management LLC lowered its holdings in Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ:VECO) by 23.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 292,247 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after selling 91,033 shares during the quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.49% of Veeco Instruments worth $8,893,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Aristotle Capital Boston LLC increased its holdings in Veeco Instruments by 41.6% during the third quarter. Aristotle Capital Boston LLC now owns 617,933 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $18,804,000 after buying an additional 181,670 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Veeco Instruments by 130.3% during the third quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 77,108 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,346,000 after buying an additional 43,628 shares during the period. Creative Planning boosted its position in Veeco Instruments by 37.5% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 106,938 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $3,254,000 after acquiring an additional 29,147 shares in the last quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. bought a new stake in Veeco Instruments during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,004,000. Finally, 4D Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Veeco Instruments by 17.6% in the 3rd quarter. 4D Advisors LLC now owns 200,000 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $6,086,000 after acquiring an additional 30,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.46% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Veeco Instruments

In related news, CEO William John Miller sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.62, for a total transaction of $1,581,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 414,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,107,849.66. This represents a 10.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 2.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Zacks Research raised Veeco Instruments from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Citigroup lifted their target price on Veeco Instruments from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note 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 analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Veeco Instruments has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $28.17.

Veeco Instruments Stock Performance

Shares of VECO opened at $30.95 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 4.75, a quick ratio of 3.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a PE ratio of 52.46 and a beta of 1.17. Veeco Instruments Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.92 and a 12 month high of $35.77. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $31.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $29.86.

Veeco Instruments 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.