Barometer Capital Management Inc. Has $17.86 Million Stock Position in Electronic Arts Inc. $EA

Key Points

• Barometer Capital Management increased its stake in Electronic Arts by 291.5% in the fourth quarter, ending with 87,400 shares valued at about $17.86 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other investors holding 90.23% of Electronic Arts shares. Other major holders also added to positions, including Vanguard and Geode Capital Management.
• Wall Street sentiment is mostly cautious: the stock currently carries an average "Hold" rating and a consensus price target of $196.64, even as EA trades near its 52-week high.

Barometer Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) by 291.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 87,400 shares of the game software company's stock after acquiring an additional 65,074 shares during the quarter. Electronic Arts accounts for 2.1% of Barometer Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Barometer Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Electronic Arts were worth $17,858,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,773,086 shares of the game software company's stock worth $5,879,205,000 after buying an additional 485,030 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,764,572 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $1,382,030,000 after acquiring an additional 143,195 shares during the period. Pentwater Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $968,160,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Electronic Arts by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,591,869 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $926,194,000 after acquiring an additional 374,840 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Electronic Arts by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,314,962 shares of the game software company's stock worth $870,328,000 after purchasing an additional 202,657 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.23% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Electronic Arts from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Electronic Arts to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. Argus cut Electronic Arts from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $202.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $196.64.

Electronic Arts Stock Performance

Shares of EA stock opened at $203.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. Electronic Arts Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $146.97 and a fifty-two week high of $204.88. The stock's 50-day moving average is $202.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $202.35. The firm has a market cap of $50.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.18, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.65.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be given a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 27th. Electronic Arts's payout ratio is currently 21.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Electronic Arts news, EVP Jacob J. Schatz sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.19, for a total value of $1,005,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,287 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,507,721.53. The trade was a 10.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,066 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.66, for a total transaction of $1,021,609.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 85,974 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,337,516.84. This represents a 5.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last three months, insiders sold 39,906 shares of company stock valued at $8,032,336. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Electronic Arts Company Profile

Electronic Arts Inc NASDAQ: EA is a global interactive entertainment company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in 1982 by Trip Hawkins, EA develops, publishes and distributes video games and related content for a variety of platforms, including consoles, personal computers and mobile devices. The company combines in-house development, partnerships and studio acquisitions to create and maintain a portfolio of entertainment properties and live-service experiences for players worldwide.

EA's product lineup spans several well-known franchises and genres.

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