Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC Trims Stock Position in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC decreased its holdings in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 850,768 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 40,661 shares during the quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC’s holdings in Match Group were worth $27,829,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTCH. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Match Group during the 4th quarter valued at $2,352,000. Prudential PLC lifted its position in Match Group by 159.2% during the fourth quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 36,070 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,180,000 after purchasing an additional 22,153 shares in the last quarter. Intrepid Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Match Group by 17.2% in the fourth quarter. Intrepid Capital Management Inc. now owns 68,862 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,252,000 after buying an additional 10,091 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new position in shares of Match Group in the fourth quarter worth about $41,663,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in shares of Match Group by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 116,279 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,803,000 after acquiring an additional 12,770 shares during the period. 94.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Match Group Trading Down 4.8 %

MTCH opened at $28.74 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $32.61 and a 200 day moving average of $33.61. Match Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $27.66 and a 12 month high of $38.84. The firm has a market cap of $7.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.23, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.49.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 negative return on equity of 574.22% and a net margin of 15.84%. On average, research analysts forecast that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Match Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock 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 buy up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid 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 2.64%. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Match Group news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at $55,533.40. The trade was a 99.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on MTCH shares. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $40.00 price target on shares of Match Group in a report on Thursday, December 12th. HSBC cut shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Match Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Match Group from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, 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 report on Thursday, December 12th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.