Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Electronic Arts Inc. $EA

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its position in Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) by 6.1% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 563,730 shares of the game software company’s stock after selling 36,531 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Electronic Arts were worth $114,928,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of EA. Ascentis Independent Advisors acquired a new position in Electronic Arts in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Electronic Arts during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Electronic Arts during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac purchased a new stake in shares of Electronic Arts in the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its stake in shares of Electronic Arts by 32.8% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 231 shares of the game software company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. 90.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Electronic Arts from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Electronic Arts to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 6th. Argus downgraded Electronic Arts from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Citigroup lifted 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $196.64.

Insider Activity

In other Electronic Arts news, CEO Andrew Wilson sold 5,066 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.66, for a total value of $1,021,609.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 85,974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,337,516.84. This represents a 5.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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 the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.19, for a total transaction 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. Insiders sold a total of 39,906 shares of company stock worth $8,060,033 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Electronic Arts Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EA traded down $0.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $206.41. 1,228,540 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,937,871. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a market cap of $51.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $202.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $202.54. Electronic Arts Inc. has a 52-week low of $146.97 and a 52-week high of $206.63.

Electronic Arts Dividend Announcement

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

About Electronic Arts

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.