Insider Selling: Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) CEO Sells 5,000 Shares of Stock

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 37,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,895,216.10. This represents a 11.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Andrew Wilson also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, January 21st, Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of Electronic Arts stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.68, for a total value of $713,400.00.
• On Friday, December 20th, Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of Electronic Arts stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.00, for a total value of $740,000.00.

Electronic Arts Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EA traded up $0.94 during trading on Friday, hitting $130.93. The company had a trading volume of 4,866,189 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,233,704. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $137.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $146.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 12 month low of $115.21 and a 12 month high of $168.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.79.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The game software company reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.41 by ($1.07). Electronic Arts had a return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 14.28%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Electronic Arts Inc. will post 4.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. Electronic Arts’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on EA. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Electronic Arts from $167.00 to $159.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com downgraded Electronic Arts from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. BNP Paribas downgraded Electronic Arts from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $125.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Electronic Arts from $145.00 to $142.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Benchmark lowered their price target on Electronic Arts from $163.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.55.

Institutional Trading of Electronic Arts

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Electronic Arts during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Electronic Arts in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 141.0% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 200 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, LGT Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Electronic Arts during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.23% of the company’s stock.

About Electronic Arts

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.