HSBC Upgrades Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) to “Buy”

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) was upgraded by analysts at HSBC from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $190.00 target price on the game software company’s stock. HSBC’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 22.06% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on EA. DA Davidson began 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 lowered their price objective on Electronic Arts from $145.00 to $142.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Electronic Arts from $135.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Electronic Arts from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Ascendiant Capital Markets boosted their price target on Electronic Arts from $157.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Electronic Arts has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $161.83.

Electronic Arts Stock Up 0.1 %

EA stock opened at $155.66 on Wednesday. Electronic Arts has a fifty-two week low of $115.21 and a fifty-two week high of $168.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.61, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.74. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $142.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $144.84.

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) last released 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 return on equity of 17.80% and a net margin of 14.28%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Electronic Arts will post 4.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Electronic Arts

In other news, EVP Jacob J. Schatz sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.65, for a total transaction of $218,475.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,033 shares in the company, valued at $2,772,156.45. This trade represents a 7.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Vijayanthimala Singh sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.00, for a total value of $145,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 26,216 shares in the company, valued at $3,801,320. The trade was a 3.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 19,500 shares of company stock worth $2,729,195. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Electronic Arts in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Electronic Arts by 141.0% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 200 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust grew its position in shares of Electronic Arts by 56.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust now owns 208 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.23% of the company’s stock.

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.