Electronic Arts Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:EA)

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) saw unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock investors bought 17,955 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 79% compared to the average daily volume of 10,016 call options.

Electronic Arts Trading Down 0.0 %

NASDAQ EA opened at $154.70 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $141.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $144.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. Electronic Arts has a one year low of $115.21 and a one year high of $168.50.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The game software company reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by ($1.07). Electronic Arts had a net margin of 14.28% and a return on equity of 17.80%. Research analysts expect that Electronic Arts will post 4.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Electronic Arts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on EA shares. Moffett Nathanson raised shares of Electronic Arts from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Electronic Arts from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Roth Mkm decreased their price target on Electronic Arts from $158.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Electronic Arts from $167.00 to $159.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Electronic Arts presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.22.

Insider Transactions at Electronic Arts

In related news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.14, for a total value of $650,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 37,615 shares in the company, valued at $4,895,216.10. This represents a 11.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.83, for a total value of $327,075.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 47,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,216,256.62. This represents a 5.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 22,000 shares of company stock worth $3,056,270 in the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Electronic Arts

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 1,366.6% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,118,685 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $161,672,000 after buying an additional 1,042,407 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 28.9% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 20,459 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $2,957,000 after buying an additional 4,584 shares in the last quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 24,250 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $3,505,000 after acquiring an additional 1,850 shares during the last quarter. Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Electronic Arts by 5.3% during the first quarter. Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC now owns 8,758 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $1,266,000 after buying an additional 441 shares during the period. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Electronic Arts by 44.8% during the 1st quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,181 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $1,182,000 after acquiring an additional 2,533 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.23% of the company’s stock.

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.