Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Acquires 15,301 Shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. boosted its position in Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 451,343 shares of the game software company's stock after buying an additional 15,301 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned approximately 0.17% of Electronic Arts worth $66,031,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in Electronic Arts by 76.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 10,328 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $1,481,000 after buying an additional 4,471 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts during the 3rd quarter valued at $428,000. Tidal Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 45,630 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $6,545,000 after purchasing an additional 7,786 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Electronic Arts by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 863,899 shares of the game software company's stock worth $124,548,000 after purchasing an additional 66,797 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Trust Co. N.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 47.4% in the third quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 14,000 shares of the game software company's stock worth $2,008,000 after buying an additional 4,499 shares in the last quarter. 90.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.03, for a total value of $122,030.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 28,216 shares in the company, valued at $3,443,198.48. The trade was a 3.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.14, for a total transaction of $650,700.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 37,615 shares in the company, valued at $4,895,216.10. This trade represents a 11.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 22,000 shares of company stock valued at $3,032,740 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Electronic Arts Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:EA traded up $0.61 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $146.80. 766,512 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,634,937. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.26 billion, a PE ratio of 37.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.79. Electronic Arts Inc. has a one year low of $115.21 and a one year high of $168.50. The business's 50 day moving average is $138.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $144.44.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The game software company reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.41 by ($1.07). Electronic Arts had a net margin of 14.28% and a return on equity of 17.80%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Electronic Arts Inc. will post 4.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Electronic Arts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on EA. DA Davidson started coverage on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $145.00 to $142.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. BNP Paribas lowered Electronic Arts from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $125.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Benchmark upped their target price on Electronic Arts from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded Electronic Arts from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Electronic Arts has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $154.22.

Electronic Arts Company Profile

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.