Brokerages Set Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) PT at $37.72

Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-five research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $37.72.

Several research firms have recently commented on MTCH. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Match Group from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Match Group from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Match Group from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total value of $25,319.61. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,398 shares in the company, valued at $391,900.78. This represents a 6.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Match Group

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Match Group by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,672,611 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $668,732,000 after purchasing an additional 391,977 shares during the period. Starboard Value LP acquired a new position in shares of Match Group in the third quarter worth about $361,605,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Match Group by 17.0% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,475,636 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $211,818,000 after acquiring an additional 939,078 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Match Group by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,540,916 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $209,668,000 after acquiring an additional 524,144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Match Group by 56.8% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,390,194 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $78,733,000 after acquiring an additional 866,026 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.05% of the company’s stock.

Match Group Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Match Group stock opened at $35.18 on Thursday. Match Group has a 12 month low of $27.66 and a 12 month high of $39.91. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $32.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.62. The firm has a market cap of $8.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.45.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Investors of record on Monday, January 6th were issued a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, January 6th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.93%.

Match Group announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to repurchase up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Match Group Company Profile

Match Group, Inc engages in the provision of dating products. Its portfolio of brands includes Tinder, Hinge, Match, Meetic, OkCupid, Pairs, Plenty Of Fish, Azar, BLK, and Hakuna, as well as a various other brands, each built to increase users' likelihood of connecting with others. Its services are available in over 40 languages to users worldwide.