Head to Head Survey: Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) & Hagerty (NYSE:HGTY)

Hagerty (NYSE:HGTY) and Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, earnings and valuation.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

20.5% of Hagerty shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 59.8% of Root shares are held by institutional investors. 16.7% of Hagerty shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 11.7% of Root shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Hagerty and Root”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hagerty	$1.20 billion	3.45	$17.02 million	$0.28	43.29
Root	$1.18 billion	0.92	$30.90 million	$3.31	21.10

Root has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Hagerty. Root is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hagerty, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Hagerty has a beta of 0.89, indicating that its stock price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Root has a beta of 2.7, indicating that its stock price is 170% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Hagerty and Root, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hagerty	0	4	5	0	2.56
Root	1	5	2	0	2.13

Hagerty currently has a consensus price target of $14.13, suggesting a potential upside of 16.54%. Root has a consensus price target of $121.60, suggesting a potential upside of 74.09%. Given Root’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Root is more favorable than Hagerty.

Profitability

This table compares Hagerty and Root’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hagerty	5.85%	16.85%	4.94%
Root	3.80%	23.36%	3.49%

Summary

Hagerty beats Root on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hagerty

Hagerty, Inc. provides insurance agency services worldwide. It offers motor vehicle and boat insurance products; and reinsurance products. The company provides Hagerty Media, which publishes contents through the Hagerty Drivers Club Magazine (HDC), video content, and social media channels; HDC that offers subscription based products and services, including HDC Magazine, automotive enthusiast events, proprietary vehicle valuation tools, emergency roadside services, and special vehicle-related discounts. In addition, it offers HVT, a valuation tool used by the customer to access current and historic pricing data of collector vehicle models. Further, the company offers Hagerty Garage + Social, a platform that provides clubhouses and car storage facilities. Hagerty, Inc. is headquartered in Traverse City, Michigan.

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. Root, Inc. was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.