The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Acquires 6,835 Shares of Electronic Arts Inc. $EA

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Electronic Arts Inc. by 4.4%, now owning 162,571 shares valued at approximately $23.5 million.
• Electronic Arts recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.4% and a payout ratio of 19.05%.
• Multiple analysts have upgraded their ratings and price targets for Electronic Arts, with a consensus target price of $167.12 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Free Report) by 4.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 162,571 shares of the game software company's stock after buying an additional 6,835 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.06% of Electronic Arts worth $23,495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nomura Holdings Inc. increased its position in Electronic Arts by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 31,208 shares of the game software company's stock worth $4,566,000 after acquiring an additional 3,259 shares during the period. CCM Investment Group LLC bought a new position in Electronic Arts during the first quarter worth about $1,625,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in Electronic Arts by 2.1% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 653,581 shares of the game software company's stock worth $94,456,000 after acquiring an additional 13,461 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Electronic Arts by 5.2% during the first quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 105,892 shares of the game software company's stock worth $15,300,000 after acquiring an additional 5,275 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Electronic Arts by 11,587.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 669,367 shares of the game software company's stock worth $96,737,000 after acquiring an additional 663,640 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.23% of the company's stock.

Electronic Arts Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ EA traded up $0.59 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $168.62. The stock had a trading volume of 2,205,511 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,839,614. The firm has a market cap of $42.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.75. Electronic Arts Inc. has a twelve month low of $115.21 and a twelve month high of $180.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.84. The company's 50 day moving average price is $161.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $150.51.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 27th will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. 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 payout ratio is presently 19.05%.

Insider Activity at Electronic Arts

In related news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.05, for a total transaction of $855,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 52,393 shares in the company, valued at $8,961,822.65. The trade was a 8.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider owned 58,092 shares in the company, valued at $9,032,725.08. The trade was a 4.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,900 shares of company stock worth $4,778,597 over the last quarter. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Roth Capital raised shares of Electronic Arts from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $175.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Wedbush reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $210.00 target price on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Monday, August 25th. Finally, Arete Research set a $192.00 target price on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $167.12.

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.