Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) Director Sells $459,000.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Stephen Bailey, a director at Match Group Inc., recently sold 12,500 shares at an average price of $36.72, reducing his ownership by 60.80% and bringing his total shares to 8,058.
• Match Group has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, with the ex-dividend date set for October 3rd, translating to an annualized yield of 2.1%.
• The stock has faced recent downgrades from analysts, with the average rating now at "Hold" and a price target of $35.44.

Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH - Get Free Report) Director Stephen Bailey sold 12,500 shares of Match Group 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 owned 8,058 shares of the company's stock, valued at $295,889.76. This represents 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 accessible through the SEC website.

Match Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:MTCH traded up $1.05 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $37.47. 485,601 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,796,729. Match Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $26.39 and a twelve month high of $38.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $32.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.60.

Match Group Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 17th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Match Group from $52.00 to $46.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Match Group from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target 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, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Match Group from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $35.44.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Starboard Value LP lifted its holdings in shares of Match Group by 53.4% in the fourth quarter. Starboard Value LP now owns 14,656,970 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $479,429,000 after buying an additional 5,100,824 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Match Group in the first quarter valued at $142,281,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Match Group in the second quarter valued at $134,429,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Match Group by 64.2% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 9,565,726 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $298,451,000 after buying an additional 3,738,509 shares during the period. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Match Group by 15,523.3% in the second quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 3,488,204 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $107,751,000 after buying an additional 3,465,877 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.05% of the company's stock.

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.