Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 12,394 Shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 284,243 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 12,394 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.11% of Match Group worth $9,298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MTCH. Creative Planning raised its stake in shares of Match Group by 35.1% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 17,149 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $649,000 after purchasing an additional 4,460 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in Match Group by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 35,099 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,328,000 after acquiring an additional 1,006 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Match Group by 3,684.0% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 76,323 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,888,000 after buying an additional 74,306 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Match Group by 88.0% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 24,058 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $910,000 after buying an additional 11,262 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its holdings in Match Group by 79.5% during the 3rd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 156,451 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $5,793,000 after buying an additional 69,270 shares in the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MTCH has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on Match Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BTIG Research lowered Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. HSBC lowered Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Match Group from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their target price on Match Group from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Match Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.68.

Match Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MTCH opened at $31.71 on Friday. Match Group, Inc. has a one year low of $27.66 and a one year high of $38.84. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $34.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.70, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.45.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.22). Match Group had a net margin of 15.84% and a negative return on equity of 574.22%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.62%.

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

Match Group 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.