Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $206.00 and last traded at $205.6510, with a volume of 81815 shares. The stock had previously closed at $205.21.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on EA shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Electronic Arts to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. Argus downgraded Electronic Arts from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Citigroup lifted their price objective 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 note on Monday, May 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Electronic Arts currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $196.64.

Electronic Arts Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $51.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $202.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $202.47.

Electronic Arts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 27th. Electronic Arts’s payout ratio is 21.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Electronic Arts

In related news, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.36, for a total value of $302,040.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 25,991 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,233,547.76. This trade represents a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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, EVP Jacob J. Schatz sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.19, for a total transaction of $1,005,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 42,287 shares in the company, valued at $8,507,721.53. This represents a 10.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,906 shares of company stock worth $8,060,033. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Electronic Arts

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EA. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Electronic Arts by 7.5% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,377 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $692,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Sapient Capital LLC raised its position in Electronic Arts by 75.4% during the first quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 1,942 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $396,000 after purchasing an additional 835 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Electronic Arts by 150.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 39,060 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $7,963,000 after purchasing an additional 23,495 shares during the period. Carmignac Gestion lifted its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 70.3% in the 1st quarter. Carmignac Gestion now owns 48,934 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $9,976,000 after purchasing an additional 20,194 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 10.5% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 6,460 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $1,317,000 after purchasing an additional 615 shares during the last quarter. 90.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.