Barclays Cuts Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) Price Target to $52.00

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH - Get Free Report) had its price target cut by equities researchers at Barclays from $53.00 to $52.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the technology company's stock. Barclays's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 54.69% from the company's previous close.

MTCH has been the topic of several other research reports. New Street Research cut Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Match Group from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $33.00 target price (down from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com cut shares of Match Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $37.68.

Match Group Stock Down 0.5 %

Match Group stock traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $33.62. The stock had a trading volume of 2,128,755 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,333,440. The company has a 50-day moving average of $33.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $34.67. Match Group has a fifty-two week low of $27.66 and a fifty-two week high of $38.84. The company has a market cap of $8.44 billion, a PE ratio of 16.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.45.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.22). Match Group had a net margin of 15.84% and a negative return on equity of 574.22%. As a group, analysts forecast that Match Group will post 2.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Match Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the technology company to repurchase up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Match Group news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total value of $25,319.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,398 shares of the company's stock, valued at $391,900.78. This represents a 6.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Match Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Match Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $731,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of Match Group by 19.1% during the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 63,100 shares of the technology company's stock worth $2,388,000 after purchasing an additional 10,100 shares during the period. Czech National Bank grew its stake in shares of Match Group by 3.8% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 52,535 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,988,000 after purchasing an additional 1,909 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Match Group by 114.4% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,391 shares of the technology company's stock worth $204,000 after purchasing an additional 2,877 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. increased its holdings in Match Group by 3.1% in the third quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 10,006 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. 94.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Match Group Company 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.