Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Trading Up 2.8%

Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) shares were up 2.8% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $64.53 and last traded at $63.83. Approximately 32,856 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 656,203 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.08.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on ROOT. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Root from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Root from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $10.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Root from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $10.00 to $40.00 in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Root from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Root in a research note on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.00.

Root Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 1.60. The company has a market capitalization of $959.22 million, a PE ratio of -6.38 and a beta of 2.86. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $29.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.86.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The company reported ($1.64) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($2.49) by $0.85. Root had a negative net margin of 32.40% and a negative return on equity of 73.62%. The company had revenue of $194.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $108.00 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Root, Inc. will post -7.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Root

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Root by 661.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,525,371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,005,000 after acquiring an additional 2,193,896 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Root in the second quarter valued at about $1,991,000. BlackRock Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Root by 15.3% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 1,640,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,231,000 after acquiring an additional 217,175 shares in the last quarter. Twenty Acre Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Root in the first quarter valued at about $2,358,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Root by 448.8% in the second quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,174,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,398,000 after acquiring an additional 960,580 shares in the last quarter. 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.