Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Increases Position in Electronic Arts Inc. $EA

Key Points

• Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its stake in Electronic Arts by 27.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 36,489 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 167,966 shares worth about $34.3 million.
• EA’s stock was trading near $203 with a market cap of about $50.9 billion, and the company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share payable June 17, implying a 0.4% annual yield.
• Analysts currently have a Hold consensus on EA, while the company is also drawing attention for a new ad platform that could create extra revenue but may raise concerns about increased in-game advertising.

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its position in Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) by 27.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 167,966 shares of the game software company's stock after purchasing an additional 36,489 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned 0.07% of Electronic Arts worth $34,320,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Electronic Arts by 2.4% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,108 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $425,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in Electronic Arts by 32.8% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 231 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Macroview Investment Management LLC raised its position in Electronic Arts by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Macroview Investment Management LLC now owns 1,065 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its position in Electronic Arts by 2.8% in the third quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 2,510 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $506,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Finally, 44 Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Electronic Arts by 0.9% in the third quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,555 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $1,524,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.23% of the company's stock.

Electronic Arts Stock Performance

Shares of EA stock opened at $203.12 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $202.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $202.38. The company has a market cap of $50.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.20, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.65. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 12 month low of $146.97 and a 12 month high of $204.88.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Electronic Arts's payout ratio is presently 21.78%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jacob J. Schatz sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.19, for a total transaction of $1,005,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,287 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,507,721.53. The trade was a 10.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.81, for a total transaction of $240,972.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 27,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,534,323.60. The trade was a 4.17% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 31,206 shares of company stock valued at $6,293,083. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on EA. 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 raised Electronic Arts to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. Argus lowered Electronic Arts from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on 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 issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $196.64.

Electronic Arts News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Electronic Arts this week:

• Positive Sentiment: EA is creating a new advertising platform that could unlock incremental revenue by bringing brands into its games and live experiences. Electronic Arts Introduces EA Advertising, Launching Brands Directly Into Gameplay and Live Experiences
• Neutral Sentiment: Management says the ads will be integrated in a “non-disruptive” way, suggesting EA is trying to balance monetization with player retention. Electronic Arts launches EA Advertising, a new way for brands to connect with fans through its games
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors and players may worry that a bigger ad push could make EA’s games feel more commercial, potentially hurting user sentiment and engagement. Electronic Arts Announces Plans To Cram Far More Advertising Into Its Games

About Electronic Arts

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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