Jefferies Financial Group Lowers Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Price Target to $72.00

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) had its price objective decreased by Jefferies Financial Group from $84.00 to $72.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on ROOT. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Root to a strong-buy rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group lowered their target price on Root from $71.00 to $61.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an outperform rating and set a $82.00 price target (down from $88.00) on shares of Root in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $55.63.

Root Stock Down 4.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ ROOT opened at $42.74 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $641.10 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -7.45 and a beta of 2.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98. Root has a 12 month low of $7.22 and a 12 month high of $86.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $42.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.72.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.52) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.74) by $1.22. The business had revenue of $289.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $264.80 million. Root had a negative net margin of 9.81% and a negative return on equity of 50.80%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 286.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($2.55) EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Root will post -2.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Root

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Root in the second quarter valued at approximately $288,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Root in the 1st quarter valued at $293,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its position in shares of Root by 76.8% during the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 5,930 shares of the company’s stock worth $306,000 after buying an additional 2,576 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Root during the third quarter worth $412,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Root during the first quarter worth $431,000. 59.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Root

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.