Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) Cut to “Neutral” at Bank of America

Bank of America cut shares of Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Marketbeat reports. Bank of America currently has $130.00 target price on the game software company’s stock, down from their previous target price of $170.00.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on EA. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on Electronic Arts from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Roth Mkm raised their price objective on shares of Electronic Arts from $154.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $170.00 target price on shares of Electronic Arts in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Electronic Arts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $177.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $159.79.

Electronic Arts Stock Performance

Shares of EA opened at $116.56 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $152.43 and a 200 day moving average of $148.88. The company has a market capitalization of $30.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.96, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.80. Electronic Arts has a 12 month low of $115.21 and a 12 month high of $168.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Electronic Arts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 27th were issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 27th. Electronic Arts’s payout ratio is 19.54%.

Insider Activity

In other Electronic Arts news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.68, for a total value of $713,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 42,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,080,308.20. The trade was a 10.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jacob J. Schatz sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.45, for a total transaction of $215,175.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,386 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,354,721.70. This trade represents a 6.03 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 26,000 shares of company stock worth $3,986,385 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Electronic Arts

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position 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 worth $954,358,000 after buying an additional 26,505 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,639,691 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $367,789,000 after acquiring an additional 53,800 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,607,817 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $235,224,000 after purchasing an additional 95,190 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 43.3% during the 2nd quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,390,418 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $193,727,000 after purchasing an additional 420,382 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its position in Electronic Arts by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,099,746 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $160,893,000 after purchasing an additional 373,730 shares during the period. 90.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.