Match Group Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:MTCH)

Match Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MTCH) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 4,309 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 122% compared to the typical volume of 1,944 put options.

Match Group Trading Up 1.6%

MTCH stock traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $41.14. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 239,665 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,080,534. Match Group has a 12 month low of $28.81 and a 12 month high of $44.94. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $40.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $36.71. The company has a market cap of $9.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.32.

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The technology company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $853.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $857.77 million. Match Group had a negative return on equity of 324.82% and a net margin of 20.17%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Match Group will post 3.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Match Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 5th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 5th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MTCH. Truist Financial raised their target price on Match Group from $37.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered Match Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Match Group from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Zacks Research upgraded Match Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Match Group from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $42.46.

Insider Transactions at Match Group

In other Match Group news, CAO Philip D. Eigenmann sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.70, for a total value of $625,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 19,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $808,521.30. This represents a 43.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Ann Mcdaniel sold 3,531 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.43, for a total transaction of $149,820.33. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 26,839 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,138,778.77. The trade was a 11.63% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 23,291 shares of company stock worth $976,478. 0.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Match Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MTCH. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Match Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,087,055,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Match Group by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 7,494,679 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $242,003,000 after buying an additional 196,191 shares during the last quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Match Group during the second quarter valued at about $154,811,000. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Match Group by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 3,971,583 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $128,242,000 after acquiring an additional 515,750 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Manhattan CO. LLC. increased its position in shares of Match Group by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 3,557,506 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $114,872,000 after acquiring an additional 68,649 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.05% of the company’s stock.

Match Group Company Profile

Match Group, Inc is a provider of online dating and social discovery services. The company operates a portfolio of dating platforms designed to help people form connections, including Tinder, Hinge, Match, Plenty of Fish, OkCupid, Meetic, OurTime, BLK and Chispa. Its services are offered through websites and mobile applications, with features that may include profile discovery, messaging, matching, subscriptions and other paid enhancements.

Match Group serves users in markets around the world, with brands tailored to different audiences, relationship goals, age groups and geographic regions.