Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) had its price objective raised by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $105.00 to $142.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price would indicate a potential downside of 3.68% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Root in a research report on Sunday, March 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Root from $90.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Root from $67.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Root from $115.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Root presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $122.17.

Root Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROOT opened at $147.42 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $137.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.32. The stock has a market cap of $2.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -119.85 and a beta of 2.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. Root has a 12 month low of $34.04 and a 12 month high of $181.14.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.62. The company had revenue of $349.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $305.24 million. Root had a negative net margin of 1.56% and a negative return on equity of 9.81%. The firm’s revenue was up 37.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.42) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Root will post -0.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Mahtiyar Bonakdarpour sold 5,515 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.78, for a total transaction of $688,161.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 286,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,799,506.78. The trade was a 1.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Meyer Malka sold 225,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.81, for a total value of $30,557,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 503,800 shares in the company, valued at $68,421,078. The trade was a 30.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 233,659 shares of company stock worth $31,748,719. Company insiders own 11.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Root

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Root during the first quarter worth about $1,261,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Root by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 529,555 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,664,000 after purchasing an additional 2,627 shares in the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Root during the 1st quarter worth approximately $204,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Root in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,139,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Root in the first quarter valued at approximately $361,000. 59.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Root Company Profile

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.