Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) Major Shareholder Sells $805,714.00 in Stock

Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) major shareholder Meyer Malka sold 13,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.58, for a total value of $805,714.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,611,422.06. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Root Stock Performance

Root stock traded up $0.33 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $56.62. 474,694 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 669,090. Root, Inc. has a twelve month low of $4.29 and a twelve month high of $86.57. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $55.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 1.51. The firm has a market cap of $826.65 million, a PE ratio of -7.35 and a beta of 2.72.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported ($0.42) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.51) by $2.09. The business had revenue of $254.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $203.99 million. Root had a negative return on equity of 62.36% and a negative net margin of 17.61%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 263.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($2.88) EPS. Equities analysts predict that Root, Inc. will post -6.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Root

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ROOT. Raymond James & Associates acquired a new stake in shares of Root during the third quarter worth $1,315,000. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Root by 148.0% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 24,992 shares of the company’s stock worth $238,000 after purchasing an additional 14,913 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Root by 229,380.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,474 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,000 after purchasing an additional 11,469 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Root during the third quarter worth $158,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new stake in shares of Root during the third quarter worth $309,000. 59.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ROOT. JMP Securities upped their price objective on Root from $15.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Root from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $9.00 to $13.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 price objective (up from $22.00) on shares of Root in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Root in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Root from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $10.00 to $40.00 in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Root currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $39.50.

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.