Revenue improved by 37 percent compared to the previous quarter, but was off by almost 15 percent compared to the third quarter of 2008. The net income, which equates to 4 cents per share, compares to net losses of $14.7 million (47 cents per share) and $2.4 million (8 cents per share) for the previous and year-ago quarters, respectively.

On a pro forma basis, excluding charges, Veeco (Plainview, N.Y.) reported a net income of 16 cents per share.

Consensus analyst expectations had called for Veeco to post a pro forma third-quarter net income of 1 cent per share and revenue of $86.4 million, according to Yahoo Finance.

Veeco booked $226 million worth of orders in the third quarter, the highest bookings quarter in its history, the company said.

Veeco said it expects fourth quarter revenue to be between $120 million and $130 million, well above consensus analyst estimates of about $100 million. The company said it expects to report pro form earnings of 29 to 35 cents per share for the fourth quarter. Analysts had been predicting a pro forma net income of 12 cents per share, according to Yahoo Finance.

Veeco said it now expects2009 revenue to be between $353 and $363 million, up from the company's previous target of between $310 million and $325 million.