Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $41.24, but opened at $37.92. Match Group shares last traded at $37.99, with a volume of 824,714 shares changing hands.

Match Group News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Match Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Match Group reported second-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.70, above the $0.65 analyst consensus. Net income increased 36% year over year to $170.5 million, while adjusted EBITDA exceeded expectations. Match Group Announces Second Quarter Results
• Positive Sentiment: Hinge remained a growth driver, with revenue up 22% year over year and global monthly active users up 13%. Tinder engagement trends also improved, with the year-over-year daily active user decline narrowing to 4%. Match Group expects Q3 revenue of $885M-$895M
• Positive Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, payable October 20 to shareholders of record October 5. TD Cowen reaffirmed a Buy rating, although it reduced its price target to $45. Match Group Buy Rating Reaffirmed
• Neutral Sentiment: Match Group expects third-quarter revenue of $885 million to $895 million, broadly near the $891.3 million consensus estimate. Management also plans to expand Tinder Events to 26 cities by the end of September, supporting its product-led turnaround strategy. Tinder Events Expansion and Q3 Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Second-quarter revenue was $853.1 million, down approximately 1% year over year and below analysts’ expectations of $857.8 million. The miss indicates that improving engagement has not yet translated into broad-based monetization. Match Group Revenue Falls Short of Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Tinder’s sluggish performance continues to weigh on consolidated results, while declining payers and product changes designed to improve the user experience create execution risk and near-term revenue pressure. Consequently, investors are treating the turnaround as unfinished despite stronger Hinge growth.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on MTCH. Weiss Ratings raised Match Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Match Group from $34.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Match Group from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Match Group from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating on shares of Match Group in a report on Wednesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $41.71.

Match Group Stock Down 8.7%

The firm has a market cap of $8.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.30. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.29.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The technology company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.05. Match Group had a negative return on equity of 307.45% and a net margin of 18.83%.The firm had revenue of $853.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $857.77 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Match Group Inc. will post 3.11 EPS for the current year.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 5th will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 5th. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio is 30.53%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Match Group news, Director Melissa Anne Brenner sold 5,141 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.94, for a total value of $184,767.54. Following the sale, the director owned 16,218 shares in the company, valued at $582,874.92. This trade represents a 24.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Match Group by 338.3% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,143,744 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $35,124,000 after acquiring an additional 882,821 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in shares of Match Group by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 625,638 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $20,202,000 after acquiring an additional 115,852 shares during the period. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. raised its stake in shares of Match Group by 97.2% during the first quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 1,549,147 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $47,574,000 after acquiring an additional 763,764 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB raised its stake in shares of Match Group by 22.3% during the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 816,800 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $26,374,000 after acquiring an additional 148,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Match Group by 537.9% in the first quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 152,450 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,682,000 after purchasing an additional 128,550 shares during the period. 94.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Match Group Company Profile

Match Group, Inc (NASDAQ: MTCH) is a leading provider of online dating products and services. The company owns and operates a diverse portfolio of consumer brands that connect singles through digital platforms. Its flagship offerings include Match.com, Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid and PlentyOfFish, which together serve users looking for long-term relationships, casual encounters and social networking opportunities.

Originating with the launch of Match.com in 1995, Match Group has grown through a combination of organic development and strategic acquisitions.