KBC Group NV Cuts Position in Match Group Inc. $MTCH

KBC Group NV decreased its stake in Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 17.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 465,310 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 96,320 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned approximately 0.19% of Match Group worth $14,373,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Match Group by 17.4% in the first 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. grew its holdings in shares of Match Group by 64.2% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,565,726 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $298,451,000 after acquiring an additional 3,738,509 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 506,763 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Match Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $142,281,000. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. raised its holdings in Match Group by 15,523.3% during the second quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 3,488,204 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $107,751,000 after purchasing an additional 3,465,877 shares during the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Match Group Trading Down 1.4%

Match Group stock opened at $32.54 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $34.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $33.28. Match Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.39 and a 52 week high of $39.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.03, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.41.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 6th. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Match Group

In related news, Director Ann Mcdaniel sold 5,423 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 21,926 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $823,979.08. This trade represents a 19.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Philip D. Eigenmann sold 6,531 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.52, for a total value of $245,043.12. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 23,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $871,964.80. This trade represents a 21.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Match Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Match Group from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Match Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.00.

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.