Gaming giant EA sells for $55 billion

Electronic Arts (EA) has agreed
to sell itself, in the largest
leveraged buy-out in
history, to a consortium
of investors – taking the
company private so it
no longer trades on
the stock exchange

LARGEST BUY-OUTS OF ALL TIME ($ billions)

Electronic Arts
TXU
Atlantia
Walgreens Boots Alliance
Equity Office Properties Trust
HCA

2025
2007
2022
2025
2007
2006

55
48
45
39
34
33

WHO’S BUYING?

Public Investment Fund (Saudi Arabia)
Silver Lake Management (U.S.)
Affinity Partners (U.S.)*

Will pay $210 per share in
cash – 25% more than where
EA traded last week

EA share price (NASDAQ, $)

TRADING HOURS
(OMITS SAT/SUN)

9:30am
Fri, Sep 26
(open)

4:00am
Mon, Sep 29
(pre-market)

9:30am
Sep 29

4.00pm
Sep 29
(close)

210
200
190
180
170

$173.00
$202.05

Buy-out
talks leak

WHO ARE EA?

One of world’s biggest video game companies,
known for hits like Battlefield (above), EA FC
(formerly Fifa) and The Sims, as well as popular
mobile games like Plants vs Zombies (right)

*Managed by U.S. President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, with its source of funding
predominantly from Saudi Arabian government. Times are local for Wall Street, New York

Sources: Bloomberg, BBC, EA, Yahoo! Finance
Pictures: © EA
© GRAPHIC NEWS