Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Upgraded by Zacks Research to Hold Rating

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on ROOT. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Root from $172.00 to $138.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 11th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective (down previously from $140.00) on shares of Root in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Root from $89.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Weiss Ratings cut Root from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Root in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Root currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.80.

Root Stock Performance

Shares of ROOT stock opened at $88.07 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $87.43 and a 200-day moving average of $110.73. The company has a market cap of $1.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.61 and a beta of 2.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Root has a 52 week low of $68.48 and a 52 week high of $181.14.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported ($0.35) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.43) by $0.08. The business had revenue of $387.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $363.06 million. Root had a return on equity of 23.36% and a net margin of 3.80%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 26.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.35 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Root will post -0.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Root news, insider Mahtiyar Bonakdarpour sold 5,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.74, for a total transaction of $516,005.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 274,226 shares in the company, valued at $24,609,041.24. This represents a 2.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Alexander E. Timm sold 10,861 shares of Root stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.88, for a total value of $965,325.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 157,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,020,642.24. This represents a 6.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 11.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new stake in Root in the 1st quarter worth $37,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in Root during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in Root by 511.7% in the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 734 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 614 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Root by 28.5% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,087 shares of the company’s stock valued at $139,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Root by 237.2% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,000 after acquiring an additional 899 shares in the last quarter. 59.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.