Match Group Inc. $MTCH Shares Sold by HighTower Advisors LLC

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Match Group Inc. by 30.9% in the first quarter, selling 14,978 shares and now holding 33,459 shares valued at approximately $1,044,000.
• Several institutional investors increased their positions in Match Group, with Starboard Value LP raising its stake by 53.4% and Invesco Ltd. increasing theirs by 64.2%.
• Match Group has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.19, which will be paid on October 17th, with an annual yield of 2.0%.

HighTower Advisors LLC cut its position in Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH - Free Report) by 30.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,459 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 14,978 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings in Match Group were worth $1,044,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MTCH. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Match Group by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,662,515 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $87,092,000 after buying an additional 324,813 shares in the last quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Match Group by 162.0% in the fourth quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC now owns 22,712 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $743,000 after buying an additional 14,042 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Match Group by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,533,468 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $82,870,000 after purchasing an additional 273,349 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Match Group by 64.0% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 535,113 shares of the technology company's stock worth $17,504,000 after purchasing an additional 208,892 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC grew its stake in Match Group by 225.5% during the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 24,102 shares of the technology company's stock worth $788,000 after purchasing an additional 16,698 shares in the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MTCH has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their target price on Match Group from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on Match Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Barclays lowered their target price on Match Group from $52.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen cut Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Match Group from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $35.44.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ann Mcdaniel sold 5,423 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.58, for a total value of $203,796.34. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 21,926 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $823,979.08. The trade was a 19.83% decrease in their position. 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 business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director directly owned 8,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $295,889.76. The trade was a 60.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Match Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ MTCH traded up $0.30 during trading on Friday, reaching $37.34. 4,124,497 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,857,135. Match Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.39 and a 1 year high of $39.20. The stock has a market cap of $8.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $34.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $31.86.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. Match Group's payout ratio is presently 37.44%.

About Match Group

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.