Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI) Shares Bought by Macquarie Group Ltd.

Macquarie Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ:ATVI) by 5.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 34,397 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,625 shares during the quarter. Macquarie Group Ltd.’s holdings in Activision Blizzard were worth $2,944,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in shares of Activision Blizzard in the 1st quarter valued at $41,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Activision Blizzard by 3.3% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 21,919 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,756,000 after buying an additional 702 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Activision Blizzard by 8.9% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 61,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,877,000 after buying an additional 5,014 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Activision Blizzard by 62.7% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,038 shares of the company’s stock valued at $404,000 after acquiring an additional 1,942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Activision Blizzard by 58.9% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 122,289 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,797,000 after purchasing an additional 45,326 shares during the period. 81.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Activision Blizzard Stock Up 0.1 %

Activision Blizzard stock opened at $91.91 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 4.66 and a current ratio of 4.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.44. Activision Blizzard, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $70.94 and a fifty-two week high of $93.67. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $91.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.70.

Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 19th. The company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.44 billion. Activision Blizzard had a return on equity of 14.87% and a net margin of 24.87%. Analysts predict that Activision Blizzard, Inc. will post 3.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Activision Blizzard Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.99 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 1st. This represents a dividend yield of 1.07%. This is a positive change from Activision Blizzard’s previous annual dividend of $0.47. Activision Blizzard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Activision Blizzard from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $95.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, July 13th. Atlantic Securities lowered Activision Blizzard from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $95.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, July 18th. Raymond James downgraded Activision Blizzard to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 11th. Barclays downgraded Activision Blizzard from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 12th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Activision Blizzard in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Activision Blizzard presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $94.37.

Activision Blizzard Company Profile

Activision Blizzard, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops and publishes interactive entertainment content and services in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through three segments: Activision, Blizzard, and King. It develops and distributes content and services on video game consoles, personal computers, and mobile devices, including subscription, full-game, and in-game sales, as well as by licensing software to third-party or related-party companies that distribute Activision and Blizzard products.