13,620 Shares in Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) Purchased by Banque Cantonale Vaudoise

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired 13,620 shares of Electronic Arts Inc. in Q1, valued at approximately $1.97 million, reflecting increased institutional interest in the company.
• CEO Andrew Wilson sold 6,563 shares for about $992,194, reducing his ownership by 8.57%, while insiders have collectively sold 30,729 shares valued at nearly $4.68 million over the past ninety days.
• Analysts have upgraded their price targets for EA, with Goldman Sachs setting a target of $155 and Roth Capital increasing its target to $185, indicating favorable sentiment towards the stock.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 13,620 shares of the game software company's stock, valued at approximately $1,968,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 689.3% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,238,496 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $178,987,000 after buying an additional 1,081,589 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 1,366.6% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,118,685 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $161,672,000 after buying an additional 1,042,407 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 224.8% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,207,854 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $176,709,000 after buying an additional 835,985 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 130.0% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,201,353 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $175,758,000 after buying an additional 679,032 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 11,587.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 669,367 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $96,737,000 after buying an additional 663,640 shares during the period. 90.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on EA. Argus set a $170.00 price target on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Friday, May 16th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $153.00 price target (up from $139.00) on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. 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. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $166.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $164.21.

Electronic Arts Stock Up 3.0%

EA stock traded up $4.59 during trading on Friday, reaching $157.08. The stock had a trading volume of 4,396,980 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,517,279. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 1-year low of $115.21 and a 1-year high of $168.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a market capitalization of $39.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.37, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.72. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $151.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $143.24.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.50, for a total value of $398,750.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 60,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,664,424. This represents a 3.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 14,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,199,133.56. This trade represents a 6.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 30,729 shares of company stock worth $4,677,324. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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.