Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Shares Gap Up to $11.96

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $11.96, but opened at $12.97. Upwork shares last traded at $12.60, with a volume of 835,536 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Upwork from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $20.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Upwork from $18.00 to $15.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. JMP Securities increased their price target on Upwork from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Upwork from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $13.00 to $20.00 in a report on Monday, January 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.55.

Upwork Trading Up 3.2 %

The stock has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 183.74 and a beta of 1.66. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 3.01 and a current ratio of 3.01.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $183.93 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.43 million. Upwork had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 14.21%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Upwork Inc. will post 0.42 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Upwork

In related news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 20,000 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.07, for a total value of $241,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,145,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,831,978.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 67,531 shares of company stock worth $851,894 in the last three months. Insiders own 9.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Upwork

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPWK. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in Upwork by 67.8% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,988 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 803 shares in the last quarter. Bailard Inc. raised its stake in Upwork by 1.0% during the third quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 92,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 903 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in Upwork in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 107.1% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,323 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 2,236 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Upwork by 17.1% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 16,823 shares of the company’s stock worth $206,000 after acquiring an additional 2,457 shares during the last quarter. 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.