Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $165.37.

EA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $160.00 price target (up from $154.00) on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Argus increased their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $161.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Electronic Arts in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Electronic Arts

In related news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.47, for a total value of $832,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 52,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,758,819.05. This trade represents a 8.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,000 shares of Electronic Arts stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.45, for a total transaction of $164,450.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 30,216 shares in the company, valued at $4,969,021.20. This represents a 3.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,000 shares of company stock valued at $3,086,270 in the last 90 days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Electronic Arts

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EA. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Electronic Arts by 54.7% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 23,967 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $3,180,000 after purchasing an additional 8,477 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 192.5% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 7,550 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $1,002,000 after acquiring an additional 4,969 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 16.0% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,207 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $865,000 after acquiring an additional 855 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Electronic Arts during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Czech National Bank increased its holdings in Electronic Arts by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 46,360 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $6,459,000 after purchasing an additional 3,554 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.23% of the company’s stock.

Electronic Arts Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EA opened at $167.01 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $153.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $146.48. The stock has a market cap of $43.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. Electronic Arts has a fifty-two week low of $124.92 and a fifty-two week high of $168.50.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th will be paid a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. Electronic Arts’s payout ratio is presently 19.54%.

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.