Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Buys 79,317 Shares of Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in Root, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROOT) by 163.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 127,923 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 79,317 shares during the quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Root were worth $9,286,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ROOT. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Root in the third quarter valued at $33,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Root in the fourth quarter valued at $154,000. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 2,889 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in Root in the third quarter valued at $216,000. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. bought a new stake in Root in the fourth quarter valued at $218,000. 59.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Root Trading Up 13.0 %

Shares of ROOT opened at $151.73 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. Root, Inc. has a 12-month low of $34.04 and a 12-month high of $151.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.31 billion, a PE ratio of -123.36 and a beta of 2.48. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $106.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.35.

Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.63) by $1.93. Root had a negative return on equity of 9.81% and a negative net margin of 1.56%. The business had revenue of $326.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $287.79 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Root, Inc. will post -0.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on ROOT. JMP Securities lowered Root from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Root in a research note on Sunday, March 2nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Root from $67.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Citizens Jmp lowered Root from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Root in a research note on Sunday, March 2nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.33.

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.