Vanguard Group Inc. Acquires 149,064 Shares of Root, Inc. $ROOT

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) by 25.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 724,541 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 149,064 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 4.69% of Root worth $64,854,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Root by 950.0% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 36,750 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,289,000 after purchasing an additional 33,250 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its holdings in Root by 754.6% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 20,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,628,000 after buying an additional 18,134 shares in the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in Root during the second quarter worth $1,497,000. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in Root in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,829,000. Finally, Proem Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Root in the 3rd quarter valued at $3,279,000. Institutional investors own 59.82% of the company’s stock.

Root Stock Down 0.0%

Root stock opened at $47.98 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $64.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $77.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Root, Inc. has a twelve month low of $46.42 and a twelve month high of $181.14. The company has a market capitalization of $744.17 million, a P/E ratio of 20.68 and a beta of 2.84.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.28. Root had a net margin of 2.58% and a return on equity of 15.34%. The company had revenue of $397.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $381.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.30 EPS. Root’s revenue was up 21.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Root, Inc. will post -0.08 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on ROOT. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $104.00 price objective (down from $150.00) on shares of Root in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Root from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Root from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Root from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Root from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $108.40.

Root Company Profile

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.