Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) Downgraded to Buy Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report released on Wednesday.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Moffett Nathanson raised Electronic Arts from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Argus upped their target price on Electronic Arts from $161.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $173.00 price objective on shares of Electronic Arts in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Electronic Arts from $145.00 to $142.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Electronic Arts presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $155.24.

Electronic Arts Trading Up 7.6 %

Shares of Electronic Arts stock opened at $130.47 on Wednesday. Electronic Arts has a 52-week low of $115.21 and a 52-week high of $168.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $145.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.54. The firm has a market cap of $34.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.79.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The game software company reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.41 by ($1.07). Electronic Arts had a return on equity of 18.56% and a net margin of 14.12%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Electronic Arts will post 5.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Electronic Arts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.54%.

Insider Transactions at Electronic Arts

In other Electronic Arts news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.47, for a total transaction of $832,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 52,615 shares in the company, valued at $8,758,819.05. This represents a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.03, for a total transaction of $122,030.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 28,216 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,443,198.48. This trade represents a 3.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,500 shares of company stock worth $3,562,510 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Electronic Arts

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Electronic Arts by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,671,657 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $954,358,000 after purchasing an additional 26,505 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Electronic Arts by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,789,283 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $261,772,000 after purchasing an additional 23,289 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,607,817 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $235,224,000 after buying an additional 95,190 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 353.4% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,269,258 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $185,692,000 after buying an additional 989,319 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,099,746 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $160,893,000 after buying an additional 373,730 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.23% of the company’s stock.

About Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts Inc develops, markets, publishes, and distributes games, content, and services for game consoles, PCs, mobile phones, and tablets worldwide. It develops and publishes games and services across various genres, such as sports, racing, first-person shooter, action, role-playing, and simulation primarily under the Battlefield, The Sims, Apex Legends, Need for Speed, and license games from others, including FIFA, Madden NFL, UFC, and Star Wars brands.