EA dips to new 52-week low

Establishing a new 52-week low today, shares in Electronic Arts shed 30 cents, closing at $40.86. The price eclipsed the previous low over the past year of $41.10, and for one moment during trading today, shares of the company traded below $40 by a penny, at $39.99.

But the notoriety of a new low heralded not a swan song or snickers, but the siren call of analysts looking for an opportunity--and advising their clients that now is the time to heavy up on EA shares. At least two industry observers sent out memos suggesting EA shares were ripe for acquiring.

Friedman, Billings, Ramsey analyst Shawn Milne reiterated his Outperform rating for the company: "With growth returning to the video game sector in 2007," Milne said in a memo today, "we expect a sharp snapback in FY08 earnings as Research and Development spending begins to flatten out against rising revenues."

Colin Sebastian of Lazard Capital Markets also noted the meager price of EA shares as reason to put EA on one's shopping list of stocks.

In a memo he tagged with the subject heading "Implied value analysis suggests meaningful upside potential in shares" Sebastian said, "We continue to advise investors to build positions in shares of video game publishers at low points during the transition period, ahead of projected ramping next-generation sales and earnings beginning next year."

Sebastian reiterated his Buy rating on Electronic Arts and a $60 price target.

Today's memos reinforce previous calls from Wall Street analysts who see potential value from the stock now trading at a new 52-week low: On June 2, Wedbush Morgan upgraded the stock from Buy to Strong Buy; on May 25, Bear Sterns upgraded EA from Underperform to Peer Perform; and on May 22, PiperJaffray upgraded EA from Market Perform to Outperform.