Independent Franchise Partners LLP Sells 106,820 Shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA)

Independent Franchise Partners LLP lessened its stake in shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 3,856,935 shares of the game software company’s stock after selling 106,820 shares during the period. Electronic Arts accounts for about 4.2% of Independent Franchise Partners LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Independent Franchise Partners LLP’s holdings in Electronic Arts were worth $564,270,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Electronic Arts by 353.4% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,269,258 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $185,692,000 after acquiring an additional 989,319 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Electronic Arts by 224.8% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,207,854 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $176,709,000 after purchasing an additional 835,985 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Electronic Arts in the 4th quarter worth $96,698,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Electronic Arts by 591.9% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 696,861 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $101,951,000 after purchasing an additional 596,141 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group increased its stake in Electronic Arts by 100.8% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 801,915 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $117,513,000 after purchasing an additional 402,501 shares in the last quarter. 90.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on EA shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Electronic Arts from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Electronic Arts from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Electronic Arts from $175.00 to $158.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Benchmark upped their price target on Electronic Arts from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Roth Mkm dropped their price objective on Electronic Arts from $158.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $155.30.

Insider Activity at Electronic Arts

In other news, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.03, for a total value of $122,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 28,216 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,443,198.48. This trade represents a 3.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Laura Miele sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.83, for a total transaction of $327,075.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 47,514 shares of the company’s stock, 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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 22,000 shares of company stock worth $3,015,990. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Electronic Arts Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ EA opened at $142.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.25 billion, a PE ratio of 36.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.79. Electronic Arts Inc. has a one year low of $115.21 and a one year high of $168.50. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $136.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $144.33.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The game software company reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Electronic Arts Inc. will post 4.71 EPS for the current year.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. Electronic Arts’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.34%.

Electronic Arts 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.