Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.13, FiscalAI reports. Upwork had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 31.63%.The firm had revenue of $198.41 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.52 million.

Upwork Stock Down 0.7%

UPWK stock traded down $0.14 during trading on Monday, reaching $18.79. 6,282,685 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,592,072. The firm has a market cap of $2.46 billion, a PE ratio of 10.74 and a beta of 1.06. Upwork has a 1-year low of $11.13 and a 1-year high of $22.84. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $20.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at Upwork

In other news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 23,147 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.59, for a total transaction of $476,596.73. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 721,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,848,643.22. The trade was a 3.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.51, for a total value of $218,875.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 85,129 shares in the company, valued at $1,490,608.79. The trade was a 12.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 523,248 shares of company stock valued at $10,029,741 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 7.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Upwork

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UPWK. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Upwork by 19,361.1% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,503 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 3,485 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Upwork by 103.5% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 2,087 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Upwork by 1,333.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 13,972 shares of the company’s stock worth $188,000 after buying an additional 12,997 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Upwork by 85.8% in the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 15,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $213,000 after buying an additional 7,319 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Upwork by 51.4% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 16,363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $220,000 after acquiring an additional 5,553 shares during the period. 77.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UPWK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Zacks Research cut Upwork from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 target price (up from $19.00) on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.91.

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.