Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Stock Price Down 7.3% – Should You Sell?

Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT)’s stock price traded down 7.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $80.56 and last traded at $79.11. 57,770 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 338,076 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.31.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ROOT has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Root from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Root to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Root from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 target price (up previously from $82.00) on shares of Root in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Citizens Jmp cut shares of Root from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Root currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $59.38.

Root Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -69.18 and a beta of 2.55. The company’s 50 day moving average is $84.88 and its 200 day moving average is $62.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.61) by $1.96. The company had revenue of $305.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 quarterly revenue was up 165.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted ($3.16) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Root, Inc. will post -1.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Meyer Malka sold 50,959 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.78, for a total value of $4,320,304.02. Following the sale, the insider now owns 102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,647.56. This represents a 99.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Julie Szudarek sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.33, for a total value of $192,660.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 15,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,445,238.99. This trade represents a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 246,905 shares of company stock worth $20,440,479. 11.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Root

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp grew its stake in Root by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 176,891 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,683,000 after acquiring an additional 444 shares during the period. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Root by 5.5% during the second quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC now owns 9,306 shares of the company’s stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Root in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Verition Fund Management LLC increased its stake in Root by 15.2% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 9,788 shares of the company’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 1,288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Root by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 20,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,497,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares during the last quarter. 59.82% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.