Marshall Wace North America L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 499,966 shares of the game software company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,997,000. Marshall Wace North America L.P. owned about 0.16% of Electronic Arts as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Guardian Life Insurance Co. of America increased its stake in Electronic Arts by 2.9% in the first quarter. Guardian Life Insurance Co. of America now owns 1,190 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Invictus RG increased its stake in Electronic Arts by 722.0% in the first quarter. Invictus RG now owns 1,307 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $117,000 after buying an additional 1,148 shares during the last quarter. D. Scott Neal Inc. purchased a new stake in Electronic Arts during the second quarter worth approximately $120,000. Commerce Bank purchased a new stake in Electronic Arts during the first quarter worth approximately $203,000. Finally, Intrust Bank NA purchased a new stake in Electronic Arts during the first quarter worth approximately $204,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.31% of the company’s stock.
Shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) opened at 116.88 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.29 and a beta of 0.72. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $113.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $100.72. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.74 and a 52 week high of $120.25.
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 27th. The game software company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $775 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $768.47 million. Electronic Arts had a return on equity of 29.77% and a net margin of 23.31%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.07 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Electronic Arts Inc. will post $4.24 EPS for the current year.
Electronic Arts declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, May 9th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.20 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the game software company to repurchase up to 45% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
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A number of analysts have commented on EA shares. Credit Suisse Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $114.00 target price on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Sunday, May 28th. Benchmark Co. boosted their target price on Electronic Arts from $114.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 20th. Vetr upgraded Electronic Arts from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $99.98 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Thursday, May 11th. Finally, Zacks Investment Research downgraded Electronic Arts from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. The company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $115.19.
In related news, Director Lawrence F. Probst III sold 68,072 shares of Electronic Arts stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.83, for a total transaction of $8,088,995.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 176,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,955,432.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.31, for a total value of $11,131,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 100,000 shares in the company, valued at $11,131,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 326,659 shares of company stock valued at $36,894,605. Insiders own 2.55% of the company’s stock.
Electronic Arts Company Profile
Electronic Arts Inc develops, markets, publishes and distributes games, content and services that can be played by consumers on a range of platforms, which include consoles, personal computers (PCs), mobile phones and tablets. The Company’s games and services are based on a portfolio of intellectual property that includes established brands, such as FIFA, Madden NFL, Star Wars, Battlefield, the Sims and Need for Speed.
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