Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $37.72.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. BTIG Research downgraded Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. KeyCorp cut their price target on Match Group from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America raised their price target on Match Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $32.00 price target (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Match Group from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Match Group

In other Match Group news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total transaction of $25,319.61. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $391,900.78. This trade represents a 6.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Match Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MTCH. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake 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 buying an additional 939,078 shares during the period. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Match Group in the fourth quarter worth $708,000. KBC Group NV boosted its position in Match Group by 3,325.7% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,122,906 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $36,730,000 after purchasing an additional 1,090,127 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Match Group by 96.4% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,071 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $166,000 after purchasing an additional 2,489 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in Match Group by 29.4% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 51,385 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,681,000 after purchasing an additional 11,688 shares during the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Match Group Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ MTCH opened at $32.58 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $8.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.45. Match Group has a 12-month low of $27.66 and a 12-month high of $39.91. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $32.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.52.

Match Group declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to repurchase up to 19% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 6th were issued a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 6th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.93%.

About Match Group

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.