Ethic Inc. Buys 9,141 Shares of Match Group Inc. $MTCH

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. increased its stake in Match Group Inc. by 77.7%, acquiring an additional 9,141 shares during the first quarter, bringing their total to 20,913 shares, valued at $657,000.
• Match Group declared a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, with a 2.1% dividend yield, payable to stockholders of record on October 3rd.
• Wall Street analysts maintain a cautious outlook with an average rating of "Hold" and a price target of $35.44, while recent target prices range from $28.00 to $52.00.

Ethic Inc. grew its stake in shares of Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH - Free Report) by 77.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,913 shares of the technology company's stock after acquiring an additional 9,141 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Match Group were worth $657,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Match Group by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 6,880 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $215,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A. grew its position in shares of Match Group by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 10,290 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $321,000 after acquiring an additional 388 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in shares of Match Group by 14.1% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,464 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $108,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares during the period. Penserra Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Match Group by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 17,515 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $546,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Match Group by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 20,688 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $677,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares during the period. 94.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Match Group news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 12,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 8,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $295,889.76. This trade represents a 60.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Match Group Stock Up 1.4%

MTCH traded up $0.51 on Friday, hitting $37.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,896,474 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,153,445. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $33.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.74. The firm has a market cap of $8.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.37, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. Match Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on MTCH shares. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Match Group from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Match Group from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Match Group from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Match Group from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target 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.