Mawer Investment Management Ltd. Purchases 4,611,598 Shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Mawer Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 716.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,254,933 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,611,598 shares during the quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. owned 2.09% of Match Group worth $171,889,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its position in Match Group by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 10,956 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $358,000 after buying an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Match Group by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 15,889 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $520,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in shares of Match Group by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,035 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Match Group by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 74,762 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,445,000 after purchasing an additional 478 shares during the period. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in Match Group by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 7,172 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $235,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Match Group Trading Down 3.8 %

MTCH stock opened at $30.63 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.45. Match Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.66 and a 12 month high of $38.84. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $32.86 and a 200-day moving average of $33.78.

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 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 EPS for the current year.

Match Group declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the technology company to repurchase up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid 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 2.48%. Match Group’s payout ratio is presently 37.62%.

Insider Activity at Match Group

In related news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of Match Group stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total value of $7,958,987.74. Following the sale, the president now owns 1,690 shares in the company, valued at $55,533.40. The trade was a 99.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.77% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on MTCH. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Match Group from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BTIG Research downgraded Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI downgraded Match Group from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Match Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Match Group from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Match Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.68.

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.