Square Prices IPO Below Expected Range

Unfortunately for IPO investors and future potential public market shareholders, not a single dime of the $537 million raised in the IPO will go to Match Group itself.

As of 11 a.m. ET, Match shares were trading at $13.39, up 11.6 percent from $12 where the IPO had been priced late Wednesday.

Match Group raised about $537 million by selling 33.3 million shares in its IPO.

The shares are expected to begin trading on tomorrow, November 19, on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol “MTCH”.

Digital payments company Square reportedly priced its IPO at $US9 per share, below the $US11 to $US13 range it was aiming for and giving the company a $US2.9 billion valuation that is roughly half of the level it was valued at as a private company. We operate a portfolio of over 45 brands, including Match, OkCupid, Tinder, Meetic, Twoo, OurTime, BlackPeopleMeet and FriendScout24, each created to increase our users’ likelihood of finding a romantic connection.

Tinder has been criticized for promoting a culture of “hooking up”, but in many ways it’s the envy of the online dating world.

Match’s first date with Wall Street is actually more of a double date.

At the same time, Match is profitable – unlike many newish companies like Square. Revenue jumped 49% to $892.8mln.

At the “heart” of that growth is Tinder, the popular yet controversial app that has exploded onto the online dating scene.

The company, owned by media mogul Barry Diller’s IAC/InterActiveCorp, has developed online dating sites that work well on smartphones, attracting busy young professionals that are highly coveted by advertisers. That means investors who buy the common stock won’t have much of a say on key decisions like mergers, executive compensation and dividends.