Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Shares Down 7.4% – Here’s Why

Shares of Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) were down 7.4% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $57.16 and last traded at $57.18. 136,453 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 307,771 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Root from $104.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Zacks Research raised shares of Root from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. UBS Group set a $50.00 target price on shares of Root and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Root in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Root from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.00.

Root Trading Down 8.6%

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $56.56 and a 200 day moving average of $57.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $892.78 million, a PE ratio of 16.91 and a beta of 2.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $1.25. Root had a return on equity of 19.97% and a net margin of 3.58%.The firm had revenue of $393.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $398.16 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.07 EPS. Root’s quarterly revenue was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Root, Inc. will post 3.28 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Root

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROOT. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in Root by 511.7% in the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Root during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake 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 worth $164,000 after acquiring an additional 899 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in shares of Root in the third quarter worth about $144,000. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Root in the second quarter valued at about $213,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 59.82% of the company’s stock.

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.