Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty-three brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nineteen have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $188.30.

Several research analysts have commented on EA shares. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Electronic Arts from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on Electronic Arts from $207.00 to $202.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th.

Electronic Arts Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EA opened at $199.27 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $202.32 and a 200 day moving average of $196.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market cap of $49.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 74.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.75. Electronic Arts has a 12 month low of $131.15 and a 12 month high of $204.88.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. Electronic Arts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.11, for a total transaction of $1,020,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 43,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,951,856.38. The trade was a 10.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.11, for a total transaction of $510,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 53,148 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,848,038.28. This trade represents a 4.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 27,600 shares of company stock worth $5,589,823 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Electronic Arts

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 138 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Electronic Arts in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. MTM Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Electronic Arts during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Oakworth Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Electronic Arts during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in Electronic Arts by 67.5% during the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 196 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.23% of the company’s stock.

About Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ: EA) is a global interactive entertainment company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in 1982 by Trip Hawkins, EA develops, publishes and distributes video games and related content for a variety of platforms, including consoles, personal computers and mobile devices. The company combines in-house development, partnerships and studio acquisitions to create and maintain a portfolio of entertainment properties and live-service experiences for players worldwide.

EA’s product lineup spans several well-known franchises and genres.