Valmark Advisers Inc. Has $1.33 Million Stock Position in Root, Inc. $ROOT

Key Points

• Valmark Advisers Inc. increased its stake in Root, Inc. by 50.7%, holding 10,365 shares valued at approximately $1.33 million as of their latest SEC filing.
• Insider transactions revealed CEO Alexander E. Timm sold 10,861 shares at an average price of $88.88, decreasing his ownership by 6.44%.
• Analysts have updated their ratings on Root, with Zacks Research downgrading it to a "strong sell" and UBS lowering its target price to $105, reflecting mixed sentiments in market forecasts.

Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT - Free Report) by 50.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,365 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,486 shares during the quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Root worth $1,326,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ROOT. Twin Tree Management LP acquired a new position in Root in the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. KBC Group NV acquired a new position in Root in the 1st quarter valued at $48,000. Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Root in the 1st quarter valued at $204,000. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Root in the 1st quarter valued at $220,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new position in Root in the 1st quarter valued at $225,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.82% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Root

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROOT has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of Root from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $105.00 target price (down from $140.00) on shares of Root in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Root from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Root in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Root from $120.00 to $89.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Root presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $118.67.

Root Price Performance

NASDAQ:ROOT opened at $82.98 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $94.09 and a 200-day moving average of $119.22. The company has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.56 and a beta of 2.22. Root, Inc. has a 52 week low of $36.87 and a 52 week high of $181.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $382.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $348.36 million. Root had a net margin of 6.02% and a return on equity of 38.24%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 32.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.52) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Root, Inc. will post -0.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Root 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.

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