IAC Stock: InterActiveCorp Is A Pandemic-Boosted Business You Must Own

motek 1The IAC stock price prediction article was written by Motek Moyen Research Seeking Alpha’s #1 Writer on Long Ideas and #2 in Technology – Senior Analyst at I Know First.

Summary

  • Its stock is no longer cheap but InterActiveCorp remains a buy. EMA analysis convinced me that its stock has enough momentum left to zoom up higher.
  • IAC is a decent growth stock that consistently grow its annual sales without incurring substantial increase in cost of revenue.
  • Tinder and Match.com are pandemic-resistant. There are just too many horny and polygamous people in this planet. Online dating will always be the favorite hobby of many earthlings.
  • Sex tourism is almost dead because of COVID-19. However, IAC’s leadership in online dating is secure. The online dating industry will still grow to become a $9.2 billion industry by 2025.
  • IAC is the fastest tech stock that recovered from March’s pandemic panic sell-off. It is now trading higher than its February highs.

InterActiveCorp’s (IAC) stock already tout a 90-day price return of 32.57%. IAC is no longer as cheap at it was in mid-March. I’m still endorsing IAC as  a buy because online dating is a pandemic-boosted industry. The global fear over COVID-19 is why more people are stuck at home. Some people play games or watch Netflix (NFLX) to keep them happy while quarantined. Many people also go on Tinder and Match.com to flirt and seduce potential romantic and/or sexual partners. Tinder remains the most popular dating app in the world. This is reason enough why you should go long on IAC.

(Source: Seeking Alpha Premium)

For those newbies who aren’t aware of who IAC is, its the humble company that makes money from online dating addicts. IAC is currently the king of the pandemic-resistant business of love. It owns Tinder, okcupid, meetic, and match.com. Buy IAC because it dominates the growing industry of online/mobile dating.

(Source: InterActiveCorp)

Why Investors Are Very Optimistic On IAC

I agree that IAC is a very expensive stock to own right now. I went long on it when it was trading below $20 last March. IAC touts higher valuation ratios than Facebook (FB). It only means most investors are very optimistic that IAC will continue to dominate the online dating industry for many years to come. The online dating industry is expected to become a $9.2 billion industry by 2025. However, the current pandemic convinced me that this $9.2 billion estimate will come to reality within the next two years. Flirting online or through mobile apps is a good way to stay home most of the day. The future of IAC ins online dating is more fun than the high-valuation ratios of Tesla (TSLA). My takeaway is that you should take your profits on TSLA and use the money to buy more IAC.

(Source: Seeking Alpha Premium)

Match.com still owns 25% market share of the online dating game. This industry leadership should excuse the very high valuation ratios of IAC today. Match.com is very resilient in protecting its leadership in online dating and couple matchmaking. Online dating websites are easy to copy and the entry costs is not that high. However, Match.com has been the runaway leader in online dating for decades now. It goes to show that IAC has great managers and even greater customer service.

There’s an ongoing pandemic but Match.com’s paying subscribers are still growing. This is clear evidence that IAC is flourishing in a pandemic-boosted industry. People pay for Match.com accounts because it allows them to have serious fun. Having fun on Match.com could even lead to marriage or long-term relationships.

(Source: Statista)

IAC is a buy because its Match.com platform now boasts almost 10 million subscribers that pays around $21 per month. Match.com is akin to the very successful software subscription service of Adobe (ADBE) via its Creative Cloud software platform. The recurring revenue from Match.com and other IAC-owned digital romance websites will keep adding up as more people appreciate that online dating is a safe hobby versus COVID-19 virus.

The continuing success of Tinder is also a big reason why IAC has lofty valuation ratios. Tinder’s paying subscribers in Q4 2015 was only 714,000. Tinder ended Q4 2019 with 5.9 million paying subscribers. The proliferation of 4G (and soon 5G) connections and cheaper data cellular subscriptions is why I’m bulling on mobile dating apps. Mobile dating apps like Tinder can benefit from this industry’s expected growth to $8.4 billion/year by 2024.

(Source: Statista)

Going forward, IAC is well-prepared to benefit the most from web and mobile dating services for many years to come. It has acquired/launched globally-known brands that online/mobile dating patrons will continue to prioritize.

InterActiveCorp Is A Pandemic-Boosted Growth Investment

Online dating is a pandemic boosted industry. InterActiveCorp’s bread and butter is online dating through its websites and mobile apps. We should therefore go long on IAC whenever there is a pandemic. We are late going in on a long-term winner. However, better late than never will still let us rake in profits in the future. Many have tried but no rival has disrupted the leadership of Tinder or Match.com.

Proof of this is the balance sheet entry over the revenue numbers of IAC. You should invest in InterActiveCorp because it managed to consistently grow its business without it incurring massive increase in cost of revenues (user acquisition costs). Online dating apps and portals have to spend to attract active users. IAC had to keep advertising its many websites/apps to attract paying subscribers.

(Source: Seeking Alpha Premium)

Despite many imitators, IAC tripled its revenue over the last 9 years. It did this without it tripling its cost of revenues. This achievement is why IAC touts a healthy balance sheet. It has total cash & short-term investments reserve of $2.89 billion. InterActiveCorp’s total debt is only $95.8 million. IAC also boasts a TTM levered free cash flow of $669.2 million. A healthy balance sheet is always an endearing quality to percipient investors.

Conclusion

The reason why Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook Dating last September is because of InterActiveCorp’s success. The fact that FB still has lower valuation ratios than IAC means investors are not bullish on Facebook Dating. Going forward, Tinder and match.com are already too big. Facebook Dating is not a threat to IAC’s long-term prosperity. Most girlfriends and wives have access to their partners’ facebook accounts, Facebook Dating is therefore a poor choice for men (and women) to find new romantic/sexual partners. Tinder and Match.com will forever rule the online and mobile dating industries.

Great balance sheet plus resilient leadership on the pandemic-boosted business of love is why IAC deserves a one year price target of $305. This is higher than Tipranks’ average one year PT of $292 for IAC. My higher estimate is because I Know First has a mega super bullish one year forecast score for IAC.

Those who want to do short-term swing trades, I’m sure you already know that IAC has outstanding buy signals based on EMA analysis. The 5 day EMA of IAC is $266.28. This is above the 13-day EMA of $256.21, and the 20-day EMA of $248.59. EMA-focused traders will always buy when the 5-day EMA crosses above 13-day and 20-day EMA numbers. If you want more technical signals, the chart below screams IAC is a strong buy.

(Source: Investing.com)

Past I Know First Success with IAC Stock Price Prediction

I Know First has been bullish on IAC shares in past forecasts. On April 6, 2019, the I Know First algorithm issued a bullish 3-month forecast for IAC with a signal of 2.13 and a predictability of 0.63, the algorithm successfully forecasted the movement of the IAC share.  After 3 months, IAC shares rose by 9.77% in line with the I Know First algorithm’s forecast. See chart below.

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