Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Stock Price Up 4.6% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Root shares rose 4.6% to about $51.98 in Tuesday trading, though volume was 89% below the average session level.
• Analysts remain cautious: six rate Root a “Hold” and one rates it a “Buy,” with a consensus price target of $62.25 after several target cuts and a Jefferies downgrade.
• Root’s latest quarterly results were mixed, with EPS of $1.49 beating estimates of $0.83, while revenue of $389.2 million fell short of expectations and increased just 1.6% year over year.

Shares of Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT - Get Free Report) were up 4.6% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $52.00 and last traded at $51.98. Approximately 32,061 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 302,769 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.70.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROOT has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Root in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Root from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Root from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $78.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Zacks Research upgraded Root from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, UBS Group set a $50.00 price target on Root and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $62.25.

Root Trading Up 5.8%

The business's 50 day simple moving average is $56.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.33. The stock has a market cap of $814.98 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.81 and a beta of 2.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.66. The company had revenue of $389.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $395.14 million. Root had a net margin of 3.78% and a return on equity of 19.72%. Root's revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.29 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Root, Inc. will post 3.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Root

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ROOT. CoreCap Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Root in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in Root by 511.7% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 734 shares of the company's stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in Root during the third quarter worth $144,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of Root by 237.2% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,278 shares of the company's stock valued at $164,000 after purchasing an additional 899 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank acquired a new position in Root in the 3rd quarter valued at about $194,000. 59.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Root

Root, trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker ROOT, is a Columbus, Ohio–based insurance company that leverages mobile technology and data analytics to offer personalized auto insurance policies. Founded in 2015 by Alex Timm and Dan Manges, Root set out to transform traditional underwriting by focusing on individual driving behavior rather than broad demographic factors.

The company's core product is usage-based auto insurance, delivered through a smartphone app that monitors driving patterns such as speed, braking and phone usage behind the wheel.

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