Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) Stake Cut by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 17.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 137,477 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 28,201 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Match Group were worth $4,478,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Match Group by 2.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,672,611 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $668,732,000 after purchasing an additional 391,977 shares during the period. Starboard Value LP purchased a new stake in Match Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $361,605,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Match Group by 17.0% during 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. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Match Group by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,540,916 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $209,668,000 after acquiring an additional 524,144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Match Group by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,667,907 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $87,267,000 after acquiring an additional 69,947 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.05% of the company’s stock.

Match Group Trading Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ MTCH opened at $31.20 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.45, a PEG ratio of 0.82 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 stock’s 50 day moving average is $32.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.74.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last announced 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 net margin of 15.84% and a negative return on equity of 574.22%. On average, analysts predict that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. Match Group’s payout ratio is 37.62%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on MTCH shares. BTIG Research cut Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $40.00 price target on shares of Match Group in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Match Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI cut shares of Match Group from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and set a $35.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, New Street Research lowered shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. 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, Match Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.68.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of Match Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total value of $7,958,987.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 1,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $55,533.40. The trade was a 99.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

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.