Baker Avenue Asset Management LP Sells 6,637 Shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA)

Key Points

• Baker Avenue Asset Management LP reduced its stake in Electronic Arts by 2.3%, holding 277,538 shares valued at approximately $40.11 million.
• Multiple institutional investors, including Assenagon Asset Management and Pacer Advisors, significantly increased their stakes in Electronic Arts, highlighting strong interest in the stock.
• Electronic Arts declared a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, equating to an annualized yield of 0.5% and a payout ratio of 19.05%.

Baker Avenue Asset Management LP cut its position in Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) by 2.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 277,538 shares of the game software company's stock after selling 6,637 shares during the quarter. Electronic Arts comprises 1.3% of Baker Avenue Asset Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP owned approximately 0.11% of Electronic Arts worth $40,110,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blueshift Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Electronic Arts during the 1st quarter valued at $955,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 56.4% in 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 in the last quarter. TradeLink Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Electronic Arts during the first quarter valued at $260,000. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in Electronic Arts by 7.0% during the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 299,110 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $43,227,000 after buying an additional 19,556 shares during the period. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 93.4% during the first quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 7,703 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $1,113,000 after acquiring an additional 3,721 shares during the period. 90.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Electronic Arts

In other news, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.53, for a total transaction of $159,530.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 37,131 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,923,508.43. This represents a 2.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jacob J. Schatz sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.32, for a total value of $222,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 28,448 shares in the company, valued at $4,219,407.36. The trade was a 5.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 30,729 shares of company stock valued at $4,677,324. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group set a $167.00 price target on Electronic Arts and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Electronic Arts from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Moffett Nathanson reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $163.00 price target on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $168.00 price objective on shares of Electronic Arts and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Electronic Arts has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $164.21.

Electronic Arts Stock Up 3.0%

Shares of EA traded up $4.59 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $157.08. 4,396,980 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,517,279. The company has a market cap of $39.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 12-month low of $115.21 and a 12-month high of $168.50. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $151.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $143.25.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 27th will be paid a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 27th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Electronic Arts's payout ratio is 19.05%.

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.