Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday after Scotiabank lowered their price target on the stock from $17.00 to $15.00. The stock had previously closed at $18.79, but opened at $15.00. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the stock. Upwork shares last traded at $15.8350, with a volume of 3,806,157 shares trading hands.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on UPWK. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on shares of Upwork from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup dropped their price target on Upwork from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Upwork from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Upwork from $22.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 23,147 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.59, for a total value of $476,596.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 721,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,848,643.22. This trade represents a 3.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Dave Bottoms sold 9,622 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.66, for a total transaction of $198,790.52. Following the transaction, the insider owned 345 shares in the company, valued at $7,127.70. This represents a 96.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 523,248 shares of company stock worth $10,029,741. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Upwork News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Upwork this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recorded full?year 2025 revenue of $787.8M and record adjusted EBITDA of $225.6M — shows scale and margin expansion that supports longer?term profitability. GlobeNewswire
• Positive Sentiment: Needham & Company reiterated a Buy rating and set a $25 price target (~62.8% above current levels), providing analyst support that could limit downside for some investors. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: The company is emphasizing AI integration and strategic initiatives on the earnings call — these are constructive for the business model but represent longer?term optionality rather than immediate revenue upside. Yahoo Finance
• Negative Sentiment: Q1 2026 guidance was cut: EPS of $0.26–$0.28 vs. consensus ~$0.36 and revenue guidance of $192M–$197M vs. ~$201M consensus — the weaker near?term outlook is the primary driver of today’s sell?off.
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed/missed Q4 prints: reported revenue ~$198.4M (below some estimates) and several outlets flagged EPS misses on certain measures — these misses contributed to a steep after?hours decline. Quiver Quantitative Zacks
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling activity reported over the past 6 months — can raise investor concern about management stock convictions and add selling pressure. Quiver Quantitative (insider data)

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Upwork

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Upwork in the second quarter valued at $5,118,000. Ruffer LLP bought a new stake in shares of Upwork during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,716,000. Aviance Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Upwork in the 2nd quarter valued at about $619,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC raised its holdings in Upwork by 80.6% in the 2nd quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 251,263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,377,000 after acquiring an additional 112,133 shares during the period. Finally, Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC lifted its position in Upwork by 27.1% during the second quarter. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC now owns 463,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,235,000 after acquiring an additional 98,811 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Upwork Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.71 and a beta of 1.06. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.72.

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.