Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH - Get Free Report) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Friday.

MTCH has been the subject of a number of other reports. Evercore ISI cut Match Group from an "outperform" rating to an "inline" rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Match Group from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Match Group from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Match Group from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, BTIG Research cut shares of Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Match Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $36.44.

Match Group Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of MTCH traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $29.66. 3,305,814 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,933,967. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.43 billion, a PE ratio of 14.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.49. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $30.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.53. Match Group has a fifty-two week low of $26.39 and a fifty-two week high of $38.84.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.22). Match Group had a negative return on equity of 574.22% and a net margin of 15.84%. Research analysts predict that Match Group will post 2.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Match Group

In other news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total value of $7,958,987.74. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 1,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at $55,533.40. This represents a 99.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Match Group

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Starboard Value LP increased its stake in shares of Match Group by 53.4% in the 4th quarter. Starboard Value LP now owns 14,656,970 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $479,429,000 after purchasing an additional 5,100,824 shares in the last quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in Match Group by 716.8% during the fourth quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 5,254,933 shares of the technology company's stock worth $171,889,000 after buying an additional 4,611,598 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Match Group during the fourth quarter worth about $112,176,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in Match Group by 110.5% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,624,212 shares of the technology company's stock worth $183,968,000 after purchasing an additional 2,952,470 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased 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 purchasing an additional 2,042,677 shares in the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.