Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Given “Hold (C)” Rating at Weiss Ratings

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT)‘s stock had its “hold (c)” rating reiterated by stock analysts at Weiss Ratings in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 price objective (down from $140.00) on shares of Root in a research report on Monday, August 18th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Root from $51.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Root from $172.00 to $138.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Root from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Root from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $118.67.

Root Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:ROOT opened at $81.73 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $94.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $119.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The company has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.31 and a beta of 2.22. Root has a 12-month low of $36.87 and a 12-month high of $181.14.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.23. Root had a return on equity of 38.24% and a net margin of 6.02%.The company had revenue of $382.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $348.36 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.52) EPS. Root’s revenue was up 32.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Root will post -0.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Root

In related news, insider Mahtiyar Bonakdarpour sold 5,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.74, for a total transaction of $516,005.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 274,226 shares in the company, valued at $24,609,041.24. The trade was a 2.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Alexander E. Timm sold 10,861 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.88, for a total value of $965,325.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 157,748 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,020,642.24. This represents a 6.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Root

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROOT. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Root by 69.7% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 8,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $611,000 after buying an additional 3,459 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in Root by 12.0% in the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 7,477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $543,000 after buying an additional 801 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Root by 20,561.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 12,810 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,709,000 after buying an additional 12,748 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Root during the first quarter worth approximately $220,000. Finally, Valmark Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Root during the first quarter worth approximately $918,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.82% of the company’s stock.

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.