Analysts Set Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) Price Target at $59.13

Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the nine ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $59.13.

ROOT has been the subject of a number of research reports. JMP Securities cut Root from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Citizens Jmp lowered Root from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Root from $84.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Root from $64.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 target price (up previously from $82.00) on shares of Root in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Julie Szudarek sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.33, for a total transaction of $192,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,003 shares in the company, valued at $1,445,238.99. This trade represents a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Meyer Malka sold 75,839 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.21, for a total transaction of $6,158,885.19. Following the sale, the insider now owns 43,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,500,719.47. This represents a 63.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 246,905 shares of company stock valued at $20,440,479 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 11.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Root

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hood River Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Root in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $9,547,000. Driehaus Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Root in the second quarter worth approximately $9,154,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Root during the 2nd quarter worth $1,280,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Root during the 3rd quarter valued at $645,000. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Root by 966.2% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $682,000 after purchasing an additional 16,348 shares in the last quarter. 59.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Root Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of ROOT opened at $77.17 on Friday. Root has a 1-year low of $7.22 and a 1-year high of $118.15. The company has a market capitalization of $1.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -62.74 and a beta of 2.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $83.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $61.10.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.61) by $1.96. The company had revenue of $305.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $272.77 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 165.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($3.16) EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Root will post -1.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.