Electronic Arts Gets a Downgrade From Jefferies

American video game company Electronic Arts has received a downgrade from Jefferies, citing slowing FIFA sales and an unproven game slate.

Analyst Timothy O’Shea has downgraded the stock from “buy” to “hold” on Thursday and has warned clients in a note that the company’s 2019 content lineup remains largely untested.

“Non-sports games is precisely the area where EA has the most to prove,” O’Shea wrote. “Excluding sports games, EA has launched a string of misses,” wrote O’Shea.

According to the firm, the company has “a lot to prove.” The analyst wrote, “Non-sports games is precisely the area where EA has the most to prove.”

He added, “Excluding sports games, EA has launched a string of misses. Mass Effect Andromeda got a 71 metacritic. Need for Speed got a 62 metacritic rating. And Star Wars Battlefront 2 saw a massive fan backlash.”

“When EA brought loot boxes to Star Wars Battlefront 2, the fan backlash was swift and severe,” O’Shea said. “Battlefront 2 dramatically underperformed its original estimates, and bowing to pressure EA capitulated to gamers by removing loot boxes from the game. This was a first important sign that Ultimate Team growth would begin to stall.”

O’Shea also slashed his price target on the stock from $139 to $95.

Disclaimer: We have no position in Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) and have not been compensated for this article.