Electronic Arts Inc. $EA Shares Sold by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Electronic Arts by 3.1%, now owning 104,354 shares valued at approximately $15.1 million.
• Analysts have raised price targets for Electronic Arts, with Bank of America setting a new target at $168.00 and Arete Research at $192.00, reflecting a overall consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, with an ex-dividend date of August 27th, representing a 0.4% dividend yield.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) by 3.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 104,354 shares of the game software company's stock after selling 3,323 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Electronic Arts were worth $15,081,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in EA. Financial Management Professionals Inc. raised its holdings in Electronic Arts by 15.0% during the first quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 560 shares of the game software company's stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust raised its holdings in Electronic Arts by 56.4% during 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. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Electronic Arts by 34.2% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 298 shares of the game software company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Clarius Group LLC raised its holdings in Electronic Arts by 3.6% during the first quarter. Clarius Group LLC now owns 2,204 shares of the game software company's stock worth $319,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Conning Inc. raised its holdings in Electronic Arts by 4.7% during the first quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 1,749 shares of the game software company's stock worth $253,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.23% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.05, for a total value of $855,250.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 52,393 shares in the company, valued at $8,961,822.65. This represents a 8.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.49, for a total transaction of $388,725.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 58,092 shares in the company, valued at $9,032,725.08. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 27,400 shares of company stock valued at $4,349,372. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $166.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Electronic Arts from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Electronic Arts from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $210.00 target price on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Monday, August 25th. Finally, Arete Research set a $192.00 target price on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Electronic Arts currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $167.12.

Electronic Arts Price Performance

Shares of EA stock traded up $0.96 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $171.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,090,020 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,085,446. The business has a fifty day moving average of $160.54 and a 200-day moving average of $149.11. The stock has a market cap of $43.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.72. Electronic Arts Inc. has a twelve month low of $115.21 and a twelve month high of $180.90. 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 Dividend Announcement

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