Morgan Stanley Reaffirms “Equal Weight” Rating for Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA)

Morgan Stanley reaffirmed their equal weight rating on shares of Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) in a report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $150.00 price objective on the game software company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Electronic Arts from $165.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America boosted their price target on Electronic Arts from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wedbush upped their price objective on Electronic Arts from $162.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an outperform rating and set a $154.00 price objective on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Electronic Arts has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $161.94.

Electronic Arts Stock Down 0.8 %

EA opened at $139.55 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 1.45. The company has a market cap of $37.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.82, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.79. Electronic Arts has a one year low of $117.47 and a one year high of $153.51. The business’s fifty day moving average is $146.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $137.71.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The game software company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. Electronic Arts had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 15.77%. Analysts anticipate that Electronic Arts will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Electronic Arts Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 28th were issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 28th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Electronic Arts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.24%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.71, for a total transaction of $111,768.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,389,173.54. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.71, for a total transaction of $111,768.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 38,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,389,173.54. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.26, for a total transaction of $350,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 61,747 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,660,634.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 28,570 shares of company stock valued at $4,183,508 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Electronic Arts

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 2.9% during the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 2,828 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 23.5% during the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 494 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,194 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $291,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Claro Advisors LLC lifted its position in Electronic Arts by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 1,881 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $250,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Electronic Arts by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 20,909 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $2,913,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. 90.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.