Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) Short Interest Up 25.0% in December

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 8,175,137 shares, an increase of 25.0% from the December 15th total of 6,539,048 shares. Approximately 3.3% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,618,196 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.1 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,618,196 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.1 days. Approximately 3.3% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Key Stories Impacting Electronic Arts

Here are the key news stories impacting Electronic Arts this week:

• Positive Sentiment: EA landed five titles on PlayStation’s top downloads list, highlighting strong consumer demand and momentum at a key partner just as reports swirl about a potential ~$55 billion privatization — positive for valuation and negotiators. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: An executive producer from Ubisoft’s The Division has joined the Battlefield 6 development team at EA — a talent gain that could strengthen Battlefield’s roadmap and future updates. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: A 2025 EA title is now free to download with Nintendo Switch Online, a low-cost user-acquisition move that can expand the player base and monetization funnel. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: EA SPORTS FC revealed its Team of the Year (TOTY) event, a recurring engagement/microtransaction driver that typically boosts short-term revenue and player activity. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: EA delayed Battlefield 6 Season 2 to February; the pushback could compress near-term live-service revenue and risk player churn if content cadence slips. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares (~$1.02M), Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares (~$510.7K), and Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,200 shares (~$245.2K) on Jan 15 — sizeable disposals that can weigh on investor sentiment even if for routine reasons. SEC filing for the CEO sale: Read More.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of Electronic Arts stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 15th. The shares were 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 directly 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.65, for a total transaction of $302,475.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 5,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,128,231.75. The trade was a 21.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 128,769 shares of company stock valued at $25,946,484 over the last ninety days. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Electronic Arts

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Electronic Arts by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,420 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $500,000 after buying an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 167.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 19,306 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $2,790,000 after acquiring an additional 12,076 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 150.8% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 316 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Electronic Arts by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,444 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $710,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in Electronic Arts by 11.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 2,387 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $364,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.23% of the company’s stock.

Electronic Arts Stock Up 0.0%

NASDAQ EA traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $204.25. 2,067,845 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,524,525. Electronic Arts has a 52 week low of $115.21 and a 52 week high of $204.88. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $203.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $185.57. The company has a market cap of $51.08 billion, a PE ratio of 59.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The game software company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $1.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. Electronic Arts had a net margin of 12.14% and a return on equity of 15.30%. Electronic Arts’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.11 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Electronic Arts will post 4.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Electronic Arts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. Electronic Arts’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their target price on Electronic Arts from $206.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. TD Cowen lowered shares of Electronic Arts from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $166.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Electronic Arts in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $181.21.

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.