Short Interest in Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) Expands By 33.9%

Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,580,000 shares, an increase of 33.9% from the December 15th total of 1,180,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 681,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Insider Activity

In other Root news, major shareholder Meyer Malka sold 75,839 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Julie Szudarek sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.33, for a total value of $192,660.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,445,238.99. This represents a 11.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 246,905 shares of company stock valued at $20,440,479. 11.71% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Root

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hood River Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Root in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $9,547,000. Driehaus Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Root in the 2nd quarter valued at $9,154,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Root in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,280,000. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in Root during the 3rd quarter worth $645,000. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Root by 966.2% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $682,000 after acquiring an additional 16,348 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.82% of the company’s stock.

Root Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROOT traded down $3.02 on Friday, reaching $85.31. The stock had a trading volume of 273,252 shares, compared to its average volume of 254,648. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $1.29 billion, a P/E ratio of -69.36 and a beta of 2.55. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $84.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $62.35. Root has a 12-month low of $7.22 and a 12-month high of $118.15.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROOT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Root from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. JMP Securities downgraded Root from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective (up previously from $82.00) on shares of Root in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. UBS Group raised their target price on Root from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Citizens Jmp downgraded Root from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $59.38.

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.