Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) Shares Down 8.7% on Insider Selling

Shares of Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) dropped 8.7% during trading on Tuesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $73.47 and last traded at $74.20. Approximately 342,556 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 38% from the average daily volume of 549,470 shares. The stock had previously closed at $81.30.

Specifically, major shareholder Meyer Malka sold 118,107 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.71, for a total transaction of $9,768,629.97. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Meyer Malka sold 75,839 shares of Root stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.21, for a total transaction of $6,158,885.19. Following the sale, the insider now owns 43,107 shares in the company, valued at $3,500,719.47. This represents a 63.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROOT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Root from $64.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 price target (up previously from $82.00) on shares of Root in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Root in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Root from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Root from $84.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Four research 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.13.

Root Stock Performance

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 stock’s 50-day moving average is $46.50 and its 200 day moving average is $52.31. The stock has a market cap of $1.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -61.42 and a beta of 2.34.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.61) by $1.96. The firm had revenue of $305.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $272.77 million. Root had a negative return on equity of 9.81% and a negative net margin of 1.56%. Root’s quarterly revenue was up 165.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($3.16) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Root, Inc. will post -1.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Root

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Root by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC now owns 9,306 shares of the company’s stock worth $480,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its position in Root by 15.2% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 9,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $370,000 after purchasing an additional 1,288 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its holdings in Root by 76.8% in the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 5,930 shares of the company’s stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 2,576 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Root by 129.1% in the third quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 5,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $194,000 after buying an additional 2,889 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Root in the 2nd quarter worth about $288,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.