Hennessy Advisors Inc. Invests $7.17 Million in Root, Inc. $ROOT

Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 56,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,167,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned 0.36% of Root as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ROOT. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Root by 66.3% in the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 679,696 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,699,000 after buying an additional 271,097 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Root by 5,575.0% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 256,792 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,266,000 after buying an additional 252,267 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. purchased a new stake in Root in the 1st quarter worth $30,786,000. Driehaus Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Root in the first quarter valued at about $20,423,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Root by 765.2% in the first quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 105,728 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,108,000 after acquiring an additional 93,508 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 59.82% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on ROOT. TD Cowen increased their target price on Root from $51.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Root from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Root in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Root from $172.00 to $138.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Root from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Root presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.83.

Insider Activity at Root

In other Root news, CEO Alexander E. Timm sold 10,861 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.88, for a total transaction of $965,325.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 157,748 shares in the company, valued at $14,020,642.24. This trade represents a 6.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Mahtiyar Bonakdarpour sold 5,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.74, for a total value of $516,005.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 274,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,609,041.24. This represents a 2.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 11.76% of the company’s stock.

Root Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROOT opened at $86.76 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a PE ratio of 17.32 and a beta of 2.22. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $96.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $121.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. Root, Inc. has a 1-year low of $36.87 and a 1-year high of $181.14.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $382.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $348.36 million. Root had a return on equity of 38.24% and a net margin of 6.02%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.52) EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Root, Inc. will post -0.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Root

Root, Inc provides insurance products and services in the United States. The company offers automobile, homeowners, and renters insurance products. It operates a direct-to-consumer model; and serves customers primarily through mobile applications, as well as through its website. The company's direct distribution channels also cover digital, media, and referral channels, as well as distribution partners and agencies.