Gabelli Funds LLC Buys 28,050 Shares of Electronic Arts Inc. $EA

Gabelli Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) by 19.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 171,950 shares of the game software company’s stock after buying an additional 28,050 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Electronic Arts were worth $35,055,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ascentis Independent Advisors purchased a new position in Electronic Arts during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Electronic Arts during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in Electronic Arts during the first quarter valued at $32,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Electronic Arts during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new stake in Electronic Arts in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 90.23% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Electronic Arts

In other news, CFO Stuart Canfield sold 1,500 shares of Electronic Arts stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.36, for a total transaction of $302,040.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 25,991 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,233,547.76. The trade was a 5.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Jacob J. Schatz sold 5,000 shares of Electronic Arts stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.19, for a total value of $1,005,950.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 42,287 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,507,721.53. The trade was a 10.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders sold 31,206 shares of company stock worth $6,292,058. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Electronic Arts Stock Up 0.0%

NASDAQ EA opened at $209.08 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.43 billion, a PE ratio of 59.91, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.64. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 1 year low of $146.97 and a 1 year high of $209.34. The business’s 50-day moving average is $204.25 and its 200 day moving average is $202.80.

Electronic Arts Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 27th were issued a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 27th. Electronic Arts’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on EA. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Electronic Arts from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Electronic Arts to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. Argus lowered Electronic Arts from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Electronic Arts from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Electronic Arts from $202.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $196.64.

Electronic Arts Profile

Electronic Arts Inc (NASDAQ: EA) is a global interactive entertainment company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in 1982 by Trip Hawkins, EA develops, publishes and distributes video games and related content for a variety of platforms, including consoles, personal computers and mobile devices. The company combines in-house development, partnerships and studio acquisitions to create and maintain a portfolio of entertainment properties and live-service experiences for players worldwide.

EA’s product lineup spans several well-known franchises and genres.