Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Raises Position in Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Key Points

• The Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board significantly increased its stake in Match Group Inc. by 119.5%, acquiring a total of 50,818 shares valued at approximately $1.59 million.
• Match Group announced a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $0.76 and a yield of 2.1%, payable on October 17th.
• Institutional investors own over 94% of Match Group's stock, indicating a strong interest from larger financial entities in the company's performance.

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its position in Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH - Free Report) by 119.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 50,818 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 27,669 shares during the quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's holdings in Match Group were worth $1,586,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Match Group during the first quarter worth approximately $37,000. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new position in Match Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Match Group by 30,240.0% in the fourth quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 1,517 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 1,512 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in Match Group by 130.1% in the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,536 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 1,434 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional acquired a new position in Match Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $103,000. 94.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Match Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MTCH traded up $0.67 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $36.37. The stock had a trading volume of 1,863,964 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,812,254. Match Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.39 and a 1 year high of $38.77. The firm's 50 day moving average is $32.51 and its 200-day moving average is $31.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.36.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Match Group's dividend payout ratio is 37.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MTCH has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Match Group from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Match Group from $52.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 17th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $29.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Match Group from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $35.44.

Insider Buying and Selling at Match Group

In other Match Group news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 12,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.72, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 60.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.64% of the company's stock.

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.