Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) Raised to Buy at Roth Capital

Roth Capital upgraded shares of Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Roth Capital currently has $185.00 price objective on the game software company's stock, up from their prior price objective of $175.00.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on EA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Electronic Arts from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Electronic Arts from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Electronic Arts from $152.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Electronic Arts from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $162.80.

Electronic Arts Trading Up 2.3%

Electronic Arts stock traded up $3.56 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $157.97. The company had a trading volume of 3,882,956 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,727,281. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $39.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $148.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $142.39. Electronic Arts has a 1 year low of $115.21 and a 1 year high of $168.50.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 28th were issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 28th. Electronic Arts's payout ratio is 17.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.37, for a total transaction of $726,850.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 27,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,014,392.55. This represents a 15.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,000 shares of Electronic Arts stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.32, for a total transaction of $151,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,533 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,199,133.56. The trade was a 6.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 29,229 shares of company stock valued at $4,371,399. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Electronic Arts

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Electronic Arts by 197.5% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,916,693 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $421,524,000 after purchasing an additional 1,936,313 shares in the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Electronic Arts during the 1st quarter worth about $225,102,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Electronic Arts in the 1st quarter valued at about $203,537,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Electronic Arts by 62.7% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,253,505 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $470,197,000 after buying an additional 1,254,194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV boosted its holdings in Electronic Arts by 3,477.8% in the 1st quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 1,163,747 shares of the game software company's stock worth $168,185,000 after buying an additional 1,131,220 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.23% of the company's stock.

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.