Empirical Asset Management LLC Purchases 4,505 Shares of Match Group Inc. $MTCH

Empirical Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 28.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,230 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 4,505 shares during the period. Empirical Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Match Group were worth $625,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in Match Group by 17.4% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,321,485 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $384,808,000 after buying an additional 1,822,362 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Match Group by 64.2% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,565,726 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $298,451,000 after buying an additional 3,738,509 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Match Group by 10.0% in the 1st quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,573,084 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $173,880,000 after buying an additional 506,763 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Match Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $142,281,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Match Group by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,765,162 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $86,273,000 after buying an additional 97,255 shares in the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Match Group

In related news, Director Ann Mcdaniel sold 5,423 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.58, for a total value of $203,796.34. Following the transaction, the director owned 21,926 shares in the company, valued at approximately $823,979.08. This represents a 19.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Stephen Bailey sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total value of $459,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $295,889.76. The trade was a 60.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 24,454 shares of company stock worth $907,839 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Match Group Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ MTCH opened at $32.35 on Friday. Match Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $26.39 and a twelve month high of $39.20. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $36.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.76. The company has a market capitalization of $7.78 billion, a PE ratio of 15.94, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.38.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Match Group’s payout ratio is presently 37.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MTCH has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Match Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Match Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Match Group from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Match Group from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Match Group from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.44.

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.