Upwork’s (UPWK) “Market Outperform” Rating Reiterated at JMP Securities

JMP Securities restated their market outperform rating on shares of Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $18.00 price target on the stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Upwork from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Upwork from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Upwork from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Upwork from $13.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective (up previously from $13.00) on shares of Upwork in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Upwork has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.09.

Upwork Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UPWK opened at $15.76 on Thursday. Upwork has a twelve month low of $8.43 and a twelve month high of $18.14. The company has a market cap of $2.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.02 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 3.18, a quick ratio of 3.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $16.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $13.18.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.03. Upwork had a return on equity of 22.84% and a net margin of 11.26%. The business had revenue of $193.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $185.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.12 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Upwork will post 0.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Upwork

In related news, CFO Erica Gessert sold 4,279 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.11, for a total transaction of $73,213.69. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 133,093 shares in the company, valued at $2,277,221.23. This trade represents a 3.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Olivier Marie sold 9,153 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.92, for a total transaction of $145,715.76. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,600.48. The trade was a 87.61 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 213,847 shares of company stock valued at $3,527,750 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new stake in Upwork in the third quarter valued at $858,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Upwork by 133.5% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 116,899 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,222,000 after acquiring an additional 66,842 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 40.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 251,714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,630,000 after buying an additional 73,104 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in Upwork in the third quarter worth about $8,369,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Upwork by 2,216.8% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 503,682 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,263,000 after purchasing an additional 481,942 shares during the last quarter. 77.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.