Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $10.05, but opened at $11.70. Upwork shares last traded at $12.56, with a volume of 2,984,575 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Upwork from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Upwork from $15.00 to $11.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Upwork from $20.00 to $13.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Upwork from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Roth Mkm reduced their price objective on shares of Upwork from $19.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $15.27.

Upwork Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $10.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.77. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company has a market capitalization of $1.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.03 and a beta of 1.54.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.03. Upwork had a net margin of 10.00% and a return on equity of 20.75%. The company had revenue of $193.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $193.05 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.03) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Upwork Inc. will post 0.51 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Elizabeth A. Nelson sold 75,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.54, for a total value of $790,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 48,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $515,564.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Upwork news, Director Elizabeth A. Nelson sold 75,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.54, for a total transaction of $790,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 48,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $515,564.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Hayden Brown sold 31,506 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.65, for a total transaction of $304,032.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,190,561 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,488,913.65. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 176,783 shares of company stock valued at $1,800,221 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upwork

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Upwork in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Upwork in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 104.2% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 2,220 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Upwork in the first quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of Upwork in the second quarter worth about $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

About Upwork

Upwork Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates a work marketplace that connects businesses with various independent professionals and agencies in the United States, India, the Philippines, and internationally. The company’s work marketplace provides access to talent with various skills across a range of categories, including administrative support, sales and marketing, design and creative, and customer service, as well as web, mobile, and software development.