Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $15.50.

Several analysts recently weighed in on UPWK shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded Upwork from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Scotiabank cut their target price on Upwork from $15.00 to $10.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered Upwork from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Citigroup cut their target price on Upwork from $17.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on Upwork from $25.00 to $15.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th.

Upwork Price Performance

UPWK stock opened at $8.82 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $9.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.71. The company has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.89 and a beta of 1.01. Upwork has a 1-year low of $7.44 and a 1-year high of $22.84.

Upwork declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 18% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Upwork

In related news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 23,745 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.31, for a total value of $292,300.95. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 798,732 shares in the company, valued at $9,832,390.92. This represents a 2.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Erica Gessert sold 9,278 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.31, for a total value of $114,212.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 307,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,782,124.40. This represents a 2.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 53,080 shares of company stock worth $647,675 over the last quarter. Insiders own 4.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in UPWK. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Upwork by 68.9% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 191,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,501,000 after buying an additional 78,123 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in Upwork by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 74,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $972,000 after buying an additional 3,599 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Upwork by 364.0% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 789,638 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,305,000 after buying an additional 619,459 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in Upwork by 10.2% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 338,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,420,000 after buying an additional 31,378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning grew its holdings in Upwork by 16.9% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 29,239 shares of the company’s stock valued at $393,000 after buying an additional 4,230 shares in the last quarter. 77.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Upwork Company Profile

Upwork Inc operates a leading online talent marketplace that connects businesses with independent professionals worldwide. Through its digital platform, the company enables clients across industries—including technology, marketing, creative services and customer support—to source, hire and manage freelance talent on demand. Key features of the Upwork platform include streamlined job posting, proposal evaluation, time-tracking tools, invoicing and secure payment processing, all designed to simplify collaboration between clients and remote workers.

The company traces its roots to the merger of two pioneering freelance marketplaces, Elance (founded in 1998) and oDesk (founded in 2003), which combined in 2015 to form a unified entity.