Veeco (VEO) Risk Analysis

The stock market in general and the market for technology stocks in particular has experienced significant volatility. The trading price of our common shares has fluctuated significantly and could decline independent of the overall market, and shareholders could lose all or a substantial part of their investment. For example, in 2025 our stock price ranged from a closing high of $33.10 to a closing low of $17.35. The market price of our common shares could continue to fluctuate in response to several factors, including among others: - difficult macroeconomic conditions, economic recessions, international trade disputes, unfavorable geopolitical events, and general stock market uncertainties, such as those occasioned by a global liquidity crisis and a failure of large financial institutions;- actual or anticipated variations in our results of operations;- issues associated with the performance of our products, or the performance of our internal systems such as our customer relationship management ("CRM") system or our enterprise resource planning ("ERP") system;- announcements of financial developments or technological innovations;- our failure to meet the performance estimates of investment research analysts;- changes in recommendations and financial estimates by investment research analysts, and decisions by investment research analysts to cease coverage of our Company;- margin trading, short sales, hedging and derivative transactions involving our common stock;- our failure to successfully implement cost reduction initiatives and restructuring activities, if and when required;- our failure to maintain an effective system of disclosure controls and internal control over financial reporting, which may result in our inability to timely and accurately report our financial results or difficulties in satisfying internal control evaluations and attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002; and - the commencement of, and rulings on, litigation and legal proceedings. Securities class action litigation is often brought against a company following periods of volatility in the market price of its securities. These lawsuits, if and when brought, can result in substantial costs and a diversion of management's attention and resources, which can adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations, and liquidity.

Certain of our directors and officers have interests in the Merger that may differ from, or that are in addition to, their interests as our stockholders. William J. Miller, Ph.D., our Chief Executive Officer and a member of our board of directors, and certain other members of our board of directors, will continue as directors of the combined company after the consummation of the Merger, and will be eligible to be compensated as non-employee directors of the combined company. In addition, Dr. Miller, together with certain other Company officers, will be entitled to cash severance payments, certain health insurance coverage and the acceleration of outstanding equity awards in the event of an involuntary termination in connection with a change of control of Veeco. Our board of directors (except for one (1) independent director who serves on the boards of both Axcelis and Veeco and thus recused himself) were aware of these interests at the time they approved the Merger Agreement. These interests may cause Dr. Miller and certain of our directors and officers to view the Merger differently than you may view it as a stockholder.

Immediately following the Merger, our pre-Merger stockholders are expected to hold approximately 41.6% of the combined company's common stock and the pre-Merger stockholders of Axcelis are expected to hold approximately 58.4% of the combined company's common stock, in each case, calculated on a fully diluted basis. Our stockholders and Axcelis' stockholders currently have the right to vote for their respective directors and on certain other matters affecting their respective companies. If and when the Merger occurs, each Veeco stockholder who receives shares of Axcelis common stock will become an Axcelis stockholder with a percentage ownership of Axcelis that will be smaller than the stockholder's current percentage ownership of Veeco (without considering such stockholder's current ownership of our common stock, if any). Accordingly, our pre-Merger stockholders will have less voting power in us than they now have in Veeco and will be able to exercise less influence over the management and policies of the combined company following the consummation of the Merger than they are able to exercise over Veeco immediately prior to the consummation of the Merger.

Upon completion of the Merger, holders of Veeco common stock will become holders of shares of Axcelis common stock. Our business differs from that of Axcelis in important respects, and, accordingly, the results of operations of Axcelis after the Merger, as well as the market price of Axcelis common stock, may be affected by factors different from those currently affecting our results of operations. Additionally, the market price of Axcelis common stock may fluctuate significantly following completion of the Merger.

Under Delaware law, holders of our common stock are not entitled to an appraisal of the fair value of their shares in connection with the Merger. Appraisal rights are statutory rights that enable stockholders to dissent from certain extraordinary transactions, such as certain mergers, and to demand that the corporation pay the fair value for their shares as determined by a court in a judicial proceeding instead of receiving the consideration offered to stockholders in connection with the applicable transaction. Under Delaware law, appraisal rights are not available for the shares of any class or series if the shares of the class or series are listed on a national securities exchange or held of record by more than 2,000 holders on the record date, unless the stockholders receive in exchange for their shares anything other than shares of stock of the surviving or resulting corporation or of any other corporation that is publicly listed or held by more than 2,000 holders of record, cash proceeds from the sale of fractional shares or fractional depositary receipts or any combination of the foregoing. Our common stock is listed on the Nasdaq, and our stockholders will receive Axcelis common stock pursuant to the Merger Agreement and cash proceeds from the sale of fractional shares.

Under the Merger Agreement, at the effective time of the Merger, each share of Veeco common stock (other than each share of Veeco common stock held in treasury or held or owned by Veeco, Axcelis or Merger Sub immediately prior to the effective time of the Merger) issued and outstanding immediately prior to the effective time of the Merger will be cancelled and converted into the right to receive 0.3575 newly issued shares of Axcelis common stock. The market value of the consideration our stockholders will receive in the Merger will therefore fluctuate with the market price of Axcelis common stock. The implied value of the Merger Consideration has fluctuated since the date of the announcement of the Merger Agreement and will continue to fluctuate until the date the Merger is completed, which could occur a considerable amount of time after the date hereof. Prior to the completion of the Merger, the market price of Axcelis common stock, along with short selling activity in both our common stock and Axcelis common stock, has and is expected to continue to impact the market price of our common stock. The value of the merger consideration to be received by our stockholders has fluctuated since the date of the announcement of the Merger Agreement and will continue to fluctuate until the Merger is completed and thereafter. Accordingly, at the time of our special meeting, our stockholders will not know or be able to determine the market value of the consideration they would receive upon completion of the Merger. Stock price changes may result from a variety of factors, including, among others, interest rates, general market, industry, economic and geopolitical conditions, including the impact of continued inflation and associated changes in monetary policy, short-selling activity, changes in and speculation regarding our and Axcelis' respective businesses, operations and prospects, market assessments of the likelihood that the Merger will be completed, the timing of the Merger and regulatory considerations. Many of these factors are beyond our and Axcelis' control.