Wesbanco Bank Inc. Purchases New Shares in Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT)

Wesbanco Bank Inc. bought a new stake in Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Root by 966.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,040 shares of the company’s stock valued at $682,000 after purchasing an additional 16,348 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Root by 361.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 14,033 shares of the company’s stock valued at $529,000 after purchasing an additional 10,993 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of Root in the third quarter valued at about $216,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Root by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 20,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,497,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Root in the third quarter valued at about $428,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.82% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on ROOT shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Root from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Citizens Jmp lowered shares of Root from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Root from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Root to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Root from $84.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $59.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Root news, major shareholder Meyer Malka sold 75,839 shares of Root stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,500,719.47. The trade was a 63.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Julie Szudarek sold 2,000 shares of Root stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.33, for a total transaction of $192,660.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,003 shares in the company, valued at $1,445,238.99. This trade represents a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 246,905 shares of company stock valued at $20,440,479 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 11.71% of the company’s stock.

Root Price Performance

Shares of ROOT stock opened at $83.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $84.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.29. Root, Inc. has a 12 month low of $7.22 and a 12 month high of $118.15. The company has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of -67.74 and a beta of 2.55.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $272.77 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($3.16) earnings per share. Root’s quarterly revenue was up 165.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Root, Inc. will post -1.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Root 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.