Sound Shore Management Inc. CT Purchases Shares of 1,221,715 Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Sound Shore Management Inc. CT bought a new stake in shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,221,715 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $39,962,000. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT owned 0.49% of Match Group at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTCH. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in Match Group during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Match Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $57,000. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Match Group by 126.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,958 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 1,651 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in shares of Match Group by 14.2% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,035 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Match Group by 420.3% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 3,283 shares of the technology company's stock worth $107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,652 shares during the period. 94.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on MTCH shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $33.00 price objective (down from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Match Group from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Match Group in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Match Group from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Sixteen 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, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $37.68.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Match Group

In other Match Group news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.86, for a total transaction of $7,958,987.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 1,690 shares in the company, valued at $55,533.40. The trade was a 99.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Match Group Trading Down 3.8 %

MTCH traded down $1.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $30.63. 3,651,047 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,861,089. The firm's fifty day moving average is $32.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.80. Match Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $27.66 and a 1-year high of $38.84. The company has a market cap of $7.67 billion, a PE ratio of 15.16, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.45.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The technology company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, research analysts anticipate that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.48%. Match Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.62%.

Match Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the technology company to purchase up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.