Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) Upgraded by BNP Paribas to Strong-Buy

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at BNP Paribas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Zacks.com reports.

EA has been the topic of a number of other reports. Roth Mkm reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $154.00 target price on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Thursday, September 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Electronic Arts from $139.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wedbush increased their target price on Electronic Arts from $162.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $170.00 target price on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on Electronic Arts from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Electronic Arts currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $161.94.

Electronic Arts Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Electronic Arts stock traded up $1.27 on Wednesday, hitting $143.24. The stock had a trading volume of 1,460,568 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,081,530. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $145.38 and a 200 day moving average of $138.49. Electronic Arts has a twelve month low of $119.92 and a twelve month high of $153.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.70, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 1.45.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The game software company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.06. Electronic Arts had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 15.77%. The business had revenue of $1.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.21 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Electronic Arts will post 5.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Electronic Arts news, EVP Jacob J. Schatz sold 1,000 shares of Electronic Arts stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.86, for a total value of $144,860.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,317 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,246,860.62. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 7,384 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.91, for a total transaction of $1,106,935.44. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 31,190 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,675,692.90. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jacob J. Schatz sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.86, for a total value of $144,860.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 29,317 shares in the company, valued at $4,246,860.62. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 24,270 shares of company stock valued at $3,571,565 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Electronic Arts

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EA. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 2.9% in the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 2,828 shares of the game software company's stock worth $394,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 23.5% in the second quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 494 shares of the game software company's stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 1.5% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,302 shares of the game software company's stock worth $904,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 4.6% in the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,194 shares of the game software company's stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Claro Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 5.6% in the first 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 during the last quarter. 90.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.