River Global Investors LLP Sells 32,846 Shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

River Global Investors LLP trimmed its holdings in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 39.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 49,536 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 32,846 shares during the quarter. River Global Investors LLP’s holdings in Match Group were worth $1,621,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MTCH. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Match Group by 617.3% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 703 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Match Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Match Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $57,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Match Group by 14.2% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,035 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in Match Group by 420.3% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 3,283 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 2,652 shares during the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Match Group Trading Up 4.1 %

MTCH opened at $32.62 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $34.38. The company has a market capitalization of $8.19 billion, a PE ratio of 16.15, 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.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.22). Match Group had a negative return on equity of 574.22% and a net margin of 15.84%. Equities analysts forecast that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Match Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan 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 plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Match Group’s payout ratio is currently 37.62%.

Insider Activity at Match Group

In other Match Group news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of Match Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total transaction of $7,958,987.74. Following the transaction, the president now 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MTCH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America increased their target price on Match Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $32.00 price objective (down from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. HSBC cut shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Match Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of Match Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from 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.