Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Invests $2.15 Million in Match Group Inc. $MTCH

Key Points

• Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC has acquired a new stake in Match Group Inc., purchasing 68,858 shares valued at approximately $2.148 million.
• Institutional investors now own 94.05% of Match Group’s stock, reflecting significant interest from various funds.
• Match Group has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, with a yield of 2.0%, to be paid on October 17th.

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 68,858 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $2,148,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Starboard Value LP lifted its position in Match Group by 53.4% during the 4th quarter. Starboard Value LP now owns 14,656,970 shares of the technology company's stock worth $479,429,000 after acquiring an additional 5,100,824 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Match Group by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 10,499,123 shares of the technology company's stock worth $343,427,000 after acquiring an additional 2,042,677 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Match Group by 64.2% during 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. lifted its holdings in shares of Match Group by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,066,321 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $165,719,000 after buying an additional 487,903 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Match Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $142,281,000. 94.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Match Group

In other news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 12,500 shares of Match Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total value of $459,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on MTCH shares. Susquehanna raised their price target on Match Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Match Group from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Match Group from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Barclays reduced their price target on Match Group from $52.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $35.44.

Match Group Price Performance

Match Group stock traded up $0.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $37.30. 3,896,474 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,153,445. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $33.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $31.74. The company has a market capitalization of $8.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.37, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.36. Match Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $26.39 and a 12-month high of $39.20.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

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

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.