Norges Bank Takes $112.18 Million Position in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 3,429,397 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $112,176,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTCH. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Match Group by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 10,956 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Match Group by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 15,889 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $520,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in Match Group by 14.2% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,035 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $99,000 after buying an additional 378 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its position in Match Group by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 7,172 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $235,000 after buying an additional 657 shares during the period. Finally, Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its stake in Match Group by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 5,785 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $189,000 after buying an additional 657 shares during the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Match Group

In other news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the president now owns 1,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,533.40. The trade was a 99.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Match Group Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ MTCH opened at $31.41 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $7.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.55, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.45. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $32.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.72. 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 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.42%. Match Group’s payout ratio is currently 37.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MTCH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Loop Capital cut their target price on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 12th. HSBC lowered shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of Match Group in a report on Monday, December 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Match Group from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on Match Group from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.68.

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.