Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Trading Up 5.9% on Analyst Upgrade

Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) shot up 5.9% during trading on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $80.00 to $97.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Root traded as high as $129.76 and last traded at $131.28. 83,430 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 460,568 shares. The stock had previously closed at $123.95.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on ROOT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective (up from $82.00) on shares of Root in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. UBS Group upped their price target on Root from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. JMP Securities downgraded Root from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Citizens Jmp lowered Root from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Five investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.83.

Institutional Trading of Root

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in Root in the third quarter valued at about $216,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Root during the 3rd quarter worth about $539,000. Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its holdings in shares of Root by 120.0% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 14,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $561,000 after purchasing an additional 8,092 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in Root by 966.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $682,000 after acquiring an additional 16,348 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Root by 129.1% in the third quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 5,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $194,000 after buying an additional 2,889 shares during the period. 59.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Root Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $2.03 billion, a PE ratio of -107.23 and a beta of 2.58. 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $92.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $70.57.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $326.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $287.79 million. Sell-side analysts expect that Root, Inc. will post -0.08 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.