Analysts Set Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) PT at $196.64

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $196.6429.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on EA shares. Argus lowered shares of Electronic Arts from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Electronic Arts from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Electronic Arts to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Electronic Arts from $202.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th.

Electronic Arts Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of EA traded down $0.15 on Monday, reaching $206.41. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,228,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,937,871. Electronic Arts has a twelve month low of $146.97 and a twelve month high of $206.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $202.76 and a 200-day moving average of $202.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.76 billion, a PE ratio of 59.14, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.64.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were paid a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Electronic Arts’s dividend payout ratio is 21.78%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.36, for a total transaction of $302,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 25,991 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,233,547.76. This represents a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.10, for a total transaction of $507,750.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 73,513 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,930,490.30. This trade represents a 3.29% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 39,906 shares of company stock worth $8,060,033. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ascentis Independent Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Torren Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 235.0% during the 2nd quarter. Torren Management LLC now owns 134 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Electronic Arts in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its holdings in Electronic Arts by 100.0% in 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. Finally, Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in Electronic Arts in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. 90.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Electronic Arts Company Profile

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.