Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Stock Price Down 5.1% – What’s Next?

Shares of Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) were down 5.1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $48.80 and last traded at $48.98. Approximately 129,503 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 57% from the average session volume of 303,154 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.59.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on ROOT. Zacks Research upgraded Root from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Root from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group set a $50.00 target price on shares of Root and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Root in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Root from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $78.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.25.

Root Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $56.90 and a 200 day moving average of $54.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $764.08 million, a P/E ratio of 13.64 and a beta of 2.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.02.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.66. The firm had revenue of $389.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $395.14 million. Root had a return on equity of 19.72% and a net margin of 3.78%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.29 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Root, Inc. will post 3.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ROOT. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in Root by 780.1% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 220,815 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,949,000 after buying an additional 195,725 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG increased its stake in shares of Root by 372.1% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 228,738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,474,000 after buying an additional 180,289 shares during the period. Findell Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Root by 291.7% in the 4th quarter. Findell Capital Management LLC now owns 235,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,974,000 after buying an additional 175,000 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Root by 31.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 654,252 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,257,000 after acquiring an additional 157,654 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Root by 132.5% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 170,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,313,000 after acquiring an additional 97,149 shares during the last quarter. 59.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.