Norges Bank Takes $96.70 Million Position in Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA)

Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 660,955 shares of the game software company’s stock, valued at approximately $96,698,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 353.4% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,269,258 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $185,692,000 after acquiring an additional 989,319 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 51.5% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,099,746 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $160,893,000 after purchasing an additional 373,730 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 165.7% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 417,817 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $61,127,000 after purchasing an additional 260,567 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts during the fourth quarter worth about $34,334,000. Finally, Anchor Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 5,606.4% in the fourth quarter. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC now owns 219,013 shares of the game software company’s stock valued at $32,042,000 after buying an additional 215,175 shares during the period. 90.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Electronic Arts Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of Electronic Arts stock opened at $145.67 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.96 billion, a PE ratio of 37.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.78. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 52 week low of $115.21 and a 52 week high of $168.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $133.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.63. 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 (NASDAQ:EA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The game software company reported $2.34 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Electronic Arts Inc. will post 4.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Electronic Arts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were given a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. Electronic Arts’s payout ratio is 19.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EA has been the topic of a number of research reports. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Electronic Arts in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Electronic Arts from $145.00 to $142.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Oppenheimer cut their target price on Electronic Arts from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America increased their price target on Electronic Arts from $130.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective 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. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Electronic Arts currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $155.65.

Insider Buying and Selling at Electronic Arts

In other Electronic Arts news, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.11, for a total value of $130,110.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,238,126.76. This represents a 9.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.50, for a total transaction of $712,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 32,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,647,637.50. This trade represents a 13.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 22,000 shares of company stock worth $3,018,560. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.