Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) Shares Sold by Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd decreased its position in shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 25.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 30,187 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 10,191 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Match Group were worth $987,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MTCH has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. New Street Research downgraded shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of Match Group in a research note on Monday, December 9th. 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 report on Thursday, December 12th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Match Group from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $33.00 target price (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.68.

Match Group Stock Performance

Shares of MTCH opened at $33.93 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.45. Match Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.66 and a 1 year high of $38.84. The company’s fifty day moving average is $33.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.67.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 2.49 EPS for the current year.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.62%.

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

Insider Activity at Match Group

In other Match Group news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total transaction of $25,319.61. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 12,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $391,900.78. The trade was a 6.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

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.