Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Trading Up 8.8% Following Analyst Upgrade

Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT - Get Free Report) shares rose 8.8% on Monday after Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on the stock from $115.00 to $150.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Root traded as high as $131.96 and last traded at $130.50. 179,415 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 65% from the average daily volume of 519,770 shares. The stock had previously closed at $120.00.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Root from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Scotiabank reiterated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Root in a research report on Sunday, March 2nd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Root from $67.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $102.67.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Trading of Root

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ROOT. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Root in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,661,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Root by 163.2% during the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 127,923 shares of the company's stock worth $9,286,000 after buying an additional 79,317 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Root by 41.8% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 263,515 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,129,000 after buying an additional 77,699 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Root by 16.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 526,928 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,250,000 after acquiring an additional 73,413 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in Root in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,834,000. 59.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Root Stock Performance

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 market cap of $1.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -105.48 and a beta of 2.41. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $130.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.80.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.63) by $1.93. Root had a negative net margin of 1.56% and a negative return on equity of 9.81%. The company had revenue of $326.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $287.79 million. As a group, analysts predict that Root, Inc. will post -0.08 EPS 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.