Principal Financial Group Inc. Grows Holdings in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 0.1% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 296,637 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 403 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Match Group were worth $11,225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Match Group by 617.3% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 703 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Match Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Match Group by 54.5% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,307 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 461 shares during the last quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. acquired a new stake in Match Group during the third quarter worth about $57,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Match Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $61,000. 94.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Match Group news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total value of $25,319.61. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly 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. Company insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Match Group Price Performance

Shares of MTCH stock opened at $33.17 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $8.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.81, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.47. Match Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $27.66 and a fifty-two week high of $42.42. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $33.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.28.

Match Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to purchase up to 19% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 6th will be given a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 6th. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio is 33.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Match Group from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $32.00 target price (down from $40.00) on shares of Match Group in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. New Street Research lowered Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Match Group from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.68.

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.