272 Capital LP Makes New Investment in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

272 Capital LP bought a new position in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 45,000 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,472,000. Match Group accounts for approximately 1.4% of 272 Capital LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new stake in Match Group in the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Match Group by 30,240.0% in the 4th quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 1,517 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 1,512 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Match Group by 14.2% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,035 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 2,652 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Match Group in the fourth quarter worth $116,000. Institutional investors own 94.05% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Match Group

In other news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 99.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Match Group from $35.00 to $29.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Match Group from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. HSBC cut shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Match Group from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI downgraded Match Group from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and set a $35.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $36.44.

Match Group Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of Match Group stock opened at $30.41 on Friday. Match Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $26.39 and a twelve month high of $38.84. The company’s 50 day moving average is $30.32 and its 200 day moving average is $32.48. The company has a market cap of $7.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.49.

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

Match Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd were given a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. Match Group’s payout ratio 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.