Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Takes Position in Electronic Arts Inc. $EA

Key Points

• Louisiana State Employees Retirement System opened a new position in Electronic Arts during the first quarter, buying 27,900 shares worth about $5.69 million.
• Institutional interest in EA remains high, with hedge funds and other investors holding 90.23% of the company’s stock and several firms recently increasing their stakes.
• EA’s shares were up slightly to about $205.25, while analysts largely remain cautious: the stock has a Hold consensus rating and a consensus price target of $196.64.

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 27,900 shares of the game software company's stock, valued at approximately $5,688,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EA. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Electronic Arts by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,420 shares of the game software company's stock worth $500,000 after acquiring an additional 294 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 167.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 19,306 shares of the game software company's stock worth $2,790,000 after purchasing an additional 12,076 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 150.8% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 316 shares of the game software company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Electronic Arts during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,323,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Electronic Arts by 96.4% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,067 shares of the game software company's stock worth $490,000 after purchasing an additional 1,505 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.23% of the company's stock.

Electronic Arts Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ EA opened at $205.25 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $51.47 billion, a PE ratio of 58.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 12-month low of $146.97 and a 12-month high of $205.69. The company has a 50-day moving average of $202.27 and a 200 day moving average of $202.42.

Electronic Arts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were given a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Electronic Arts's dividend payout ratio is 21.78%.

Insider Transactions at Electronic Arts

In other Electronic Arts news, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.36, for a total value of $302,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 25,991 shares in the company, valued at $5,233,547.76. This represents a 5.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 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. Also, insider Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.10, for a total value of $507,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 73,513 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,930,490.30. This trade represents a 3.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 39,906 shares of company stock valued at $8,060,033. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Electronic Arts 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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