Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) Receives Neutral Rating from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reiterated by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in a report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $33.00 target price on the technology company’s stock, down from their previous target price of $40.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 4.30% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Match Group from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of Match Group from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of Match Group in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Match Group from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Match Group from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $37.68.

Match Group Price Performance

MTCH opened at $31.64 on Wednesday. Match Group has a 1-year low of $27.66 and a 1-year high of $42.42. The company has a market capitalization of $7.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.47. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $33.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $34.17.

Match Group announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to reacquire up to 19% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Match Group

In other news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 6.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Match Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its stake in Match Group by 2,732.1% in the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,659,718 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $62,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,601,115 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Match Group by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 276,775 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $10,459,000 after purchasing an additional 22,887 shares in the last quarter. Boyar Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Match Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,376,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Match Group by 131.9% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 6,515 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 3,705 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Match Group during the third quarter worth $249,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.05% of the company’s stock.

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.