Match Group, Inc. Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.19 (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 5th,Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a dividend of 0.19 per share by the technology company on Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd.

Match Group has a dividend payout ratio of 29.6% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Match Group to earn $2.49 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.76 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 30.5%.

Match Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MTCH opened at $34.59 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $8.69 billion, a PE ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.45. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $32.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.66. Match Group has a 1 year low of $27.66 and a 1 year high of $38.84.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 721.15% and a net margin of 17.86%. On average, research analysts expect that Match Group will post 2.37 EPS for the current year.

Match Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to reacquire 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 stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Match Group from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $33.00 price target (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of Match Group in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Match Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at Match Group

In other Match Group news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total value of $25,319.61. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 12,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $391,900.78. This trade represents a 6.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.