Natixis Cuts Position in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Natixis cut its stake in shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH - Free Report) by 12.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 63,449 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 9,008 shares during the quarter. Natixis' holdings in Match Group were worth $2,075,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $171,889,000 after purchasing an additional 4,611,598 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Match Group during the fourth quarter worth $112,176,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in Match Group by 110.5% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,624,212 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $183,968,000 after acquiring an additional 2,952,470 shares in the last quarter. DnB Asset Management AS increased its holdings in shares of Match Group by 4,659.2% in the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 1,915,093 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $62,643,000 after acquiring an additional 1,874,853 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its position in shares of Match Group by 2,732.1% in the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,659,718 shares of the technology company's stock worth $62,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,601,115 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.05% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. HSBC lowered Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Match Group from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Match Group from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Match Group from $33.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Match Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $36.58.

Insider Activity

In related news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the president now directly owns 1,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,533.40. The trade was a 99.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

Match Group Stock Performance

Shares of MTCH stock traded up $0.06 on Monday, hitting $30.13. 468,067 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,928,401. Match Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $26.39 and a twelve month high of $38.84. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $30.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.54 billion, a PE ratio of 14.91, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.49.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.22). Match Group had a negative return on equity of 574.22% and a net margin of 15.84%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd were given a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.52%. Match Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.62%.

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.