Acquisitions lift Ultratech EPS

The chipmaking gear supplier's Q4 EPS rose 14% to 48 cents, a penny better than forecasts, helped by acquisitions and new products. Sales increased 17% to $65.6 mil, topping estimates of $62.6 mil. Gross margin widened to 56.7% from 53%. In Dec., the company bought the assets of Cambridge Nanotech, and in June it acquired semiconductor packaging patents from IBM (IBM). Ultratech (UTEK) shares rose 3.9% to 40.74.