Banco Santander S.A. Purchases 8,901 Shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Banco Santander S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Match Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) by 50.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,521 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,901 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Match Group were worth $868,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Match Group by 617.3% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 703 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Match Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. bought a new stake in Match Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $57,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in Match Group by 14.2% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,035 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $99,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in Match Group by 420.3% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 3,283 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,652 shares during the last quarter. 94.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Match Group Price Performance

Shares of Match Group stock opened at $32.62 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $33.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $34.34. Match Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.66 and a 1 year high of $38.84. The stock has a market cap of $8.17 billion, a PE ratio of 16.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.45.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last released its quarterly earnings data 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, equities analysts expect that Match Group, Inc. will post 2.44 EPS for the current year.

Match Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to reacquire up to 19% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.62%.

Insider Activity at Match Group

In other Match Group news, President Gary Swidler sold 242,209 shares of Match Group stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the president now owns 1,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,533.40. The trade was a 99.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.77% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Match Group from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com cut shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. New Street Research lowered shares of Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Match Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Match Group from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Match Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” 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.