BlackRock Inc. Makes New $1.09 Billion Investment in Match Group Inc. $MTCH

BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 28,569,112 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,087,055,000. BlackRock Inc. owned about 0.12% of Match Group as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MTCH. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Match Group by 338.3% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,143,744 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $35,124,000 after buying an additional 882,821 shares in the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. grew its position in Match Group by 97.2% during the first quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 1,549,147 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $47,574,000 after buying an additional 763,764 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Match Group by 11.8% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,054,114 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $93,792,000 after buying an additional 323,006 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its stake in Match Group by 22.3% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 816,800 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,374,000 after acquiring an additional 148,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its stake in Match Group by 131.5% in the 1st quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 45,280 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,391,000 after acquiring an additional 25,722 shares during the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Match Group Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ MTCH opened at $40.87 on Friday. Match Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.81 and a 12 month high of $41.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.38 billion, a PE ratio of 14.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.88.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The technology company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.05. Match Group had a net margin of 20.17% and a negative return on equity of 324.82%. The firm had revenue of $853.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $857.77 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Match Group Inc. will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Investors of record on Monday, October 5th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 5th. Match Group’s payout ratio is 28.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MTCH. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Match Group from $37.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating on shares of Match Group in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Match Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group increased their target price on Match Group from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Match Group from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Match Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.54.

Insider Transactions at Match Group

In other Match Group news, Director Glenn Schiffman acquired 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $36.63 per share, with a total value of $109,890.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 56,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,064,833.10. The trade was a 5.62% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

About Match Group

Match Group, Inc (NASDAQ: MTCH) is a leading provider of online dating products and services. The company owns and operates a diverse portfolio of consumer brands that connect singles through digital platforms. Its flagship offerings include Match.com, Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid and PlentyOfFish, which together serve users looking for long-term relationships, casual encounters and social networking opportunities.

Originating with the launch of Match.com in 1995, Match Group has grown through a combination of organic development and strategic acquisitions.