Starboard Value LP Acquires 5,100,824 Shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Starboard Value LP lifted its position in shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH - Free Report) by 53.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,656,970 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 5,100,824 shares during the quarter. Match Group makes up 8.7% of Starboard Value LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Starboard Value LP owned about 5.84% of Match Group worth $479,429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Match Group by 94.3% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 59,510 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,947,000 after buying an additional 28,884 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Match Group by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,475,636 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $211,818,000 after acquiring an additional 939,078 shares during the last quarter. Penn Davis Mcfarland Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Match Group by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Penn Davis Mcfarland Inc. now owns 478,913 shares of the technology company's stock worth $15,665,000 after acquiring an additional 8,414 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Match Group by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,667,907 shares of the technology company's stock worth $87,267,000 after acquiring an additional 69,947 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Match Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $250,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.05% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on MTCH shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Match Group from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Match Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 17th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Match Group from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, HSBC downgraded Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $35.91.

Match Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MTCH traded down $0.23 during trading on Friday, hitting $29.23. The company's stock had a trading volume of 962,607 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,055,811. Match Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.39 and a fifty-two week high of $38.84. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $29.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $31.65. The company has a market capitalization of $7.32 billion, a PE ratio of 14.47, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.42.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.60%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. Match Group's payout ratio is currently 37.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Spencer M. Rascoff purchased 70,885 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $28.05 per share, with a total value of $1,988,324.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 137,478 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,856,257.90. The trade was a 106.45% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total transaction of $7,958,987.74. Following the sale, the president now owns 1,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $55,533.40. The trade was a 99.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.64% of the company's stock.

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.