Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.22 EPS

Match Group (NASDAQ:MTCH) issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The technology company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.22), Zacks reports. Match Group had a negative return on equity of 721.15% and a net margin of 17.86%.

Match Group Stock Performance

Match Group stock traded up $1.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $36.47. 8,935,765 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,990,130. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.16 billion, a PE ratio of 16.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.45. Match Group has a fifty-two week low of $27.66 and a fifty-two week high of $38.84.

Match Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Investors of record on Monday, January 6th were issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 6th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. Match Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.93%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Stephen Bailey sold 801 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.61, for a total transaction of $25,319.61. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on MTCH. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of Match Group from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Match Group from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Match Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Match Group from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Match Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $37.72.

About Match Group

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.