Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) shares gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $72.77, but opened at $71.30. Root shares last traded at $74.59, with a volume of 62,317 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JMP Securities cut Root from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Root to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Root from $84.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citizens Jmp downgraded shares of Root from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Root from $64.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $59.13.

Root Stock Up 2.5 %

The stock has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -60.62 and a beta of 2.47. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.61) by $1.96. Root had a negative net margin of 1.56% and a negative return on equity of 9.81%. The company had revenue of $305.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $272.77 million. During the same period last year, the business posted ($3.16) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 165.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Root, Inc. will post -1.2 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Root

In other Root news, major shareholder Meyer Malka sold 75,839 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.21, for a total transaction of $6,158,885.19. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 43,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,500,719.47. This represents a 63.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Julie Szudarek sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.33, for a total transaction of $192,660.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 15,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,445,238.99. The trade was a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 246,905 shares of company stock worth $20,440,479. 11.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Root

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Root in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,280,000. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Root by 2,355.5% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 11,590 shares of the company’s stock worth $598,000 after buying an additional 11,118 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its stake in Root by 76.8% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 5,930 shares of the company’s stock worth $306,000 after acquiring an additional 2,576 shares during the period. Venator Management LLC acquired a new position in Root in the 2nd quarter valued at $516,000. Finally, Hood River Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Root during the 2nd quarter valued at $9,547,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.82% of the company’s stock.

Root Company Profile

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.