Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 1,338 Shares of Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 0.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 282,905 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,338 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Match Group were worth $8,827,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Starboard Value LP increased its stake in shares of Match Group by 53.4% during the fourth quarter. Starboard Value LP now owns 14,656,970 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $479,429,000 after purchasing an additional 5,100,824 shares during the period. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Match Group by 716.8% during the fourth quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 5,254,933 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $171,889,000 after purchasing an additional 4,611,598 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Match Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $112,176,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of Match Group by 110.5% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,624,212 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $183,968,000 after purchasing an additional 2,952,470 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Match Group by 24.2% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 10,499,123 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $343,427,000 after purchasing an additional 2,042,677 shares during the period. 94.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Match Group

In related news, CEO Spencer M. Rascoff acquired 70,885 shares of Match Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $28.05 per share, for a total transaction of $1,988,324.25. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 137,478 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,856,257.90. This trade represents a 106.45% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.64% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Match Group Price Performance

NASDAQ MTCH opened at $32.25 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $30.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.34. Match Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $26.39 and a 1-year high of $38.84.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be paid a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.36%. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MTCH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Match Group from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Evercore ISI restated a “cautious” rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of Match Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 17th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Match Group from $34.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Match Group from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Match Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $35.96.

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.