Short Interest in Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) Expands By 12.9%

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,170,000 shares, a growth of 12.9% from the November 30th total of 6,350,000 shares. Approximately 3.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,900,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.8 days.

Electronic Arts Stock Down 1.1 %

EA stock traded down $1.58 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $146.54. The company had a trading volume of 1,152,578 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,052,090. The company has a market capitalization of $38.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.67, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.79. Electronic Arts has a 52 week low of $124.92 and a 52 week high of $168.50. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $157.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

Electronic Arts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 27th were paid a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 27th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. Electronic Arts's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on EA. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Electronic Arts in a research report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Electronic Arts in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $160.00 price objective (up from $154.00) on shares of Electronic Arts in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Roth Mkm upped their target price on shares of Electronic Arts from $154.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Electronic Arts presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $165.37.

Insider Activity at Electronic Arts

In other Electronic Arts news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.87, for a total transaction of $364,675.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 51,747 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,548,334.89. This represents a 4.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.24, for a total value of $143,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 29,190 shares in the company, valued at $4,181,175.60. The trade was a 3.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,500 shares of company stock valued at $3,635,235 in the last 90 days. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Electronic Arts

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 47.4% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 14,000 shares of the game software company's stock worth $2,008,000 after buying an additional 4,499 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Electronic Arts by 8.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 863,899 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $124,548,000 after purchasing an additional 66,797 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 20.6% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 45,630 shares of the game software company's stock worth $6,545,000 after purchasing an additional 7,786 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Electronic Arts during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $428,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Electronic Arts by 76.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 10,328 shares of the game software company's stock valued at $1,481,000 after purchasing an additional 4,471 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.23% of the company's stock.

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.

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