Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 59,000 Shares of Upwork Inc. $UPWK

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) by 34.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 230,352 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 59,000 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.17% of Upwork worth $4,278,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPWK. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Upwork in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. EMC Capital Management bought a new position in Upwork in the 2nd quarter valued at $45,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Upwork by 19,361.1% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 3,485 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Upwork by 10,417.9% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 4,102 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 4,063 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new stake in shares of Upwork in the third quarter valued at $117,000. 77.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Upwork news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 23,147 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.59, for a total value of $476,596.73. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 721,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,848,643.22. This represents a 3.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gary Steele sold 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.51, for a total value of $218,875.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 85,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,490,608.79. The trade was a 12.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 522,687 shares of company stock valued at $10,020,512 in the last three months. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on UPWK. BTIG Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Upwork in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $22.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Roth Mkm increased their price target on shares of Upwork from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Upwork from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Upwork from $22.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.00.

Upwork Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UPWK opened at $13.23 on Monday. Upwork Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $11.13 and a fifty-two week high of $22.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.75 and a beta of 1.06. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $19.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.76.

About Upwork

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.