Electronic Arts Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:EA)

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Traders acquired 7,942 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 32% compared to the typical daily volume of 6,011 call options.

Electronic Arts Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of EA stock traded down $0.37 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $145.46. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 887,347 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,084,683. The stock has a market cap of $38.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.31, a PEG ratio of 1.97 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 has a 52-week low of $117.47 and a 52-week high of $153.51. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $146.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $137.60.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The game software company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $1.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.21 billion. Electronic Arts had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 15.77%. Research analysts predict that Electronic Arts will post 5.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Electronic Arts Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 28th will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 28th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Electronic Arts’s payout ratio is 16.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on EA shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Electronic Arts in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $165.00 target price on the stock. Benchmark lifted their target price on Electronic Arts from $153.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Citigroup lowered shares of Electronic Arts from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the company from $148.00 to $161.00 in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Electronic Arts from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Electronic Arts from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Electronic Arts presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $161.28.

Insider Transactions at Electronic Arts

In related news, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,000 shares of Electronic Arts stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.70, for a total transaction of $151,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 30,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,579,823. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Electronic Arts news, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,260 shares of Electronic Arts stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.37, for a total value of $186,946.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 7,553 shares in the company, valued at $1,120,638.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.70, for a total value of $151,700.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 30,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,579,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 27,070 shares of company stock valued at $3,963,638. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Electronic Arts

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EA. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S grew its position in Electronic Arts by 82.6% in the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 25,074 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $3,327,000 after acquiring an additional 11,343 shares in the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Electronic Arts by 209.7% during the first quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 45,985 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $6,101,000 after purchasing an additional 31,136 shares during the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP purchased a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts during the first quarter valued at $1,711,000. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC bought a new position in shares of Electronic Arts in the fourth quarter worth about $1,259,000. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. increased its stake in Electronic Arts by 99.4% in the 4th quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 17,338 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $2,372,000 after buying an additional 8,644 shares during the period. 90.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.