Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Arete Research

Key Points

• Electronic Arts saw an upgrade from a "hold" to a "strong-buy" rating by Arete Research, indicating a positive outlook for the company's stock.
• Several other analysts have also increased their target prices for EA, with TD Cowen raising it from $160 to $172 and HSBC Global Res promoting it to a strong-buy as well.
• Insider trading activity was noted, with CEO Andrew Wilson selling 5,000 shares, reflecting a 8.01% decrease in his ownership of the stock.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Arete Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

EA has been the topic of a number of other reports. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $135.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Electronic Arts from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Arete raised shares of Electronic Arts from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $192.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group set a $167.00 price objective on shares of Electronic Arts and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $165.32.

Electronic Arts Price Performance

Shares of EA opened at $160.99 on Tuesday. Electronic Arts has a twelve month low of $115.21 and a twelve month high of $168.50. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $151.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $143.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.35, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Insider Activity at Electronic Arts

In other Electronic Arts news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.21, for a total transaction of $761,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 57,393 shares in the company, valued at $8,735,788.53. The trade was a 8.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.32, for a total transaction of $151,320.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 14,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,199,133.56. This represents a 6.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,229 shares of company stock valued at $5,066,049 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Electronic Arts in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its holdings in Electronic Arts by 70.1% in the second quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 165 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Electronic Arts during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust raised its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 56.4% during the first quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 208 shares of the game software company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 328.9% during the second quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 193 shares of the game software company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. 90.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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