Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Lowers Stake in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. decreased its stake in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 99,144 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,835 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Match Group were worth $3,289,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MTCH. Creative Planning boosted its position in shares of Match Group by 35.1% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 17,149 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $649,000 after buying an additional 4,460 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Match Group by 1,003.4% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,582 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $98,000 after buying an additional 2,348 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Match Group by 3.0% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 35,099 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,328,000 after buying an additional 1,006 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Match Group by 95.5% in the third quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 34,500 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,305,000 after buying an additional 16,855 shares during the period. Finally, Greenleaf Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Match Group in the third quarter worth about $230,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.05% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MTCH shares. StockNews.com downgraded Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Susquehanna cut their price target on Match Group from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. New Street Research cut Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of Match Group in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price target on Match Group from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Match Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.68.

Insider Transactions at Match Group

In other news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of Match Group stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total transaction of $25,319.61. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $391,900.78. The trade was a 6.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Match Group Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of Match Group stock opened at $34.47 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.06, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.45. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.63. Match Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $27.66 and a twelve month high of $38.84.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.22). Match Group had a negative return on equity of 574.22% and a net margin of 15.84%. Sell-side analysts predict that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.62%.

Match Group declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to reacquire up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is 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.