Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 874 Shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System cut its holdings in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 5.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,226 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 874 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Match Group were worth $465,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in Match Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. bought a new position in shares of Match Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in shares of Match Group by 14.2% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,035 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $99,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. grew 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 acquiring an additional 2,652 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP increased its holdings in Match Group by 126.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,958 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $112,000 after acquiring an additional 1,651 shares during the period. 94.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Match Group

In other Match Group news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total transaction of $7,958,987.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 1,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,533.40. This trade represents a 99.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on MTCH shares. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Match Group from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $32.00 price objective (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. New Street Research cut Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of Match Group in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Match Group in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.68.

Match Group Stock Performance

MTCH opened at $31.27 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.83 billion, a PE ratio of 15.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.45. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $32.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.86. Match Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $27.66 and a 52-week high of $38.84.

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

Match Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to repurchase up to 19% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.62%.

Match Group 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.