Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the thirteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $16.20.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on UPWK. Citizens Jmp lowered shares of Upwork from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Upwork from $20.00 to $9.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered shares of Upwork from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $22.00 to $10.00 in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Upwork from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their price objective on shares of Upwork from $25.00 to $15.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 8th.

Upwork Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:UPWK opened at $8.17 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a PE ratio of 10.09 and a beta of 1.07. Upwork has a twelve month low of $7.44 and a twelve month high of $22.84. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $10.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.69.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Erica Gessert sold 26,292 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total value of $362,829.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 298,386 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,117,726.80. This trade represents a 8.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Dave Bottoms sold 17,013 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total transaction of $234,779.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 15,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $220,717.20. This trade represents a 51.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 235,186 shares of company stock worth $3,156,199. 7.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upwork

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Upwork by 44.2% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 19,231,377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $381,166,000 after purchasing an additional 5,893,970 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Upwork by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,989,217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $297,086,000 after purchasing an additional 322,455 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management lifted its position in Upwork by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 6,537,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,569,000 after purchasing an additional 23,900 shares during the last quarter. Ancient Art L.P. lifted its position in Upwork by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Ancient Art L.P. now owns 4,640,814 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,981,000 after purchasing an additional 372,147 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Upwork by 26.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,715,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,720,000 after purchasing an additional 779,506 shares during the last quarter. 77.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.