Stifel Nicolaus Has Lowered Expectations for Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) Stock Price

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) had its target price dropped by research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $36.00 to $35.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “hold” rating on the technology company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ target price indicates a potential upside of 1.99% from the stock’s previous close.

MTCH has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of Match Group in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of Match Group from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of Match Group in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Match Group from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.68.

Match Group Price Performance

Shares of MTCH stock traded up $0.74 during trading on Thursday, hitting $34.32. 2,133,517 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,191,987. Match Group has a 52-week low of $27.66 and a 52-week high of $38.84. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $32.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.45.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.22). Match Group had a negative return on equity of 721.15% and a net margin of 17.86%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Match Group will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 12,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $391,900.78. This trade represents a 6.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Match Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Starboard Value LP acquired a new position in Match Group in the third quarter worth about $361,605,000. Versor Investments LP grew its stake in Match Group by 301.7% in the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 48,200 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,824,000 after purchasing an additional 36,200 shares in the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co grew its stake in Match Group by 510.3% in the third quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co now owns 65,086 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,463,000 after purchasing an additional 54,422 shares in the last quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Match Group in the third quarter worth about $2,170,000. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in Match Group by 71.4% in the third quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 643,335 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $24,344,000 after purchasing an additional 267,890 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.05% 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.