Franklin Resources Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH - Free Report) by 18.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 326,655 shares of the technology company's stock after buying an additional 49,880 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.13% of Match Group worth $10,685,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its stake in Match Group by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 10,956 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $358,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in Match Group by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 15,889 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $520,000 after purchasing an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Match Group by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,035 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Match Group by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 74,762 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,445,000 after buying an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Match Group by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 7,172 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $235,000 after buying an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Match Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective 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. Evercore ISI downgraded Match Group from an "outperform" rating to an "inline" rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Match Group from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, HSBC cut shares of Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Match Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $37.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Match Group

In other news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of Match Group stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the president now owns 1,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. Insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

Match Group Stock Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ:MTCH traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $28.55. The stock had a trading volume of 384,975 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,939,221. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $31.58 and a 200 day moving average of $33.19. The company has a market capitalization of $7.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.13, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.49. Match Group, Inc. has a one year low of $26.39 and a one year high of $38.84.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.66%. 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.