Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Shares Up 10.3% After Analyst Upgrade

Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) traded up 10.3% during trading on Tuesday after Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on the stock from $90.00 to $150.00. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Root traded as high as $126.73 and last traded at $130.59. 43,343 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 518,859 shares. The stock had previously closed at $118.39.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Root in a research note on Sunday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Root from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Root from $67.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Root from $115.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Root presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $112.67.

Insider Activity

In other Root news, insider Mahtiyar Bonakdarpour sold 5,515 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.78, for a total value of $688,161.70. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 286,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,799,506.78. This trade represents a 1.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Alexander E. Timm sold 1,144 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.01, for a total value of $153,307.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 161,625 shares in the company, valued at $21,659,366.25. This trade represents a 0.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,659 shares of company stock worth $1,191,469 over the last 90 days. 11.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Root

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ROOT. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Root by 361.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 14,033 shares of the company’s stock valued at $529,000 after purchasing an additional 10,993 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Root by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 20,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,497,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in Root during the third quarter worth about $249,000. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in Root by 27.7% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 14,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,062,000 after buying an additional 3,169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Root during the 3rd quarter valued at about $288,000. 59.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Root Stock Up 10.9 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $130.45 and a 200-day moving average of $96.12. The firm has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -106.10 and a beta of 2.41.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.63) by $1.93. Root had a negative return on equity of 9.81% and a negative net margin of 1.56%. The business had revenue of $326.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $287.79 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast 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.