Baird Financial Group Inc. Decreases Holdings in Electronic Arts Inc. $EA

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group Inc. reduced its holdings in Electronic Arts Inc. by 18.1%, selling 28,705 shares during the first quarter, leaving them with 130,048 shares valued at approximately $18.8 million.
• Electronic Arts is set to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share on September 17th, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 0.4%.
• Recent analyst ratings show a generally positive outlook on Electronic Arts, with two Strong Buy ratings and an average price target of $167.12.

Baird Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) by 18.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 130,048 shares of the game software company's stock after selling 28,705 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Electronic Arts were worth $18,795,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Electronic Arts by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,052,085 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $4,198,607,000 after buying an additional 150,438 shares during the period. Independent Franchise Partners LLP raised its holdings in Electronic Arts by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 3,945,702 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $570,233,000 after buying an additional 88,767 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Electronic Arts by 15.6% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,733,481 shares of the game software company's stock worth $539,563,000 after purchasing an additional 504,760 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Electronic Arts by 62.7% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,253,505 shares of the game software company's stock worth $470,197,000 after purchasing an additional 1,254,194 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.23% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Electronic Arts

In other news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.05, for a total transaction of $855,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 52,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,961,822.65. This trade represents a 8.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.49, for a total value of $388,725.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 58,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,032,725.08. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 29,900 shares of company stock worth $4,778,597. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Electronic Arts Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of Electronic Arts stock traded up $0.59 during trading on Friday, hitting $168.62. 2,205,511 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,839,614. The firm has a market cap of $42.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 52-week low of $115.21 and a 52-week high of $180.90. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $161.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $150.36.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 27th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Electronic Arts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on EA. Arete Research set a $192.00 price target on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $153.00 target price (up from $139.00) on shares of Electronic Arts in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group set a $167.00 price target on Electronic Arts and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price objective on Electronic Arts from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and fifteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Electronic Arts currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $167.12.

Electronic Arts 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.