By Sam Boughedda
Investing.com — Online dating companies Match Group Inc (NASDAQ:MTCH) and Bumble Inc (NASDAQ:BMBL) drew an upgrade by Goldman Sachs to buy from neutral.
Shares of Match rose 1% on Thursday while shares of Bumble were flat.
Analyst Alexandra Steiger trimmed the price target of both, Bumble to $54 per share from $57 and Match to $157 from $162.
The re-ratings were part of a broader research note on the online dating industry, with Steiger telling investors that both companies are "well-positioned to benefit from a number of structural industry tailwinds in the years ahead."
"Match Group & Bumble have underperformed the S&P 500 in '21 and we see the current valuation as an attractive entry point into a multi-year compounded growth story.”
However, the analyst added that although the current valuations are attractive, there may need to be a greater degree of "risk-on" investor behavior for better stock performance levels.
In addition to the positive rating by Goldman, Piper Sandler initiated Bumble with a neutral rating and Match group with an overweight rating.