Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Issues FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) issued an update on its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Monday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 1.430-1.480 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 1.410. The company issued revenue guidance of $835.0 million-$850.0 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $832.5 million. Upwork also updated its Q1 2026 guidance to 0.260-0.280 EPS.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on UPWK shares. Roth Mkm increased 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. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a research note on Tuesday. Scotiabank dropped their price target on Upwork from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup cut their price objective on Upwork from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a report on Tuesday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Upwork currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $23.00.

Upwork Stock Down 19.1%

NASDAQ UPWK opened at $15.20 on Wednesday. Upwork has a twelve month low of $11.13 and a twelve month high of $22.84. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $20.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.73. The firm has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.10 and a beta of 1.06.

Insider Transactions at Upwork

In related news, insider Dave Bottoms sold 11,285 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.59, for a total transaction of $232,358.15. Following the sale, the insider owned 9,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $205,220.53. This represents a 53.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 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 transaction of $218,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 85,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,490,608.79. This trade represents a 12.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 523,248 shares of company stock worth $10,029,741. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Upwork News

Here are the key news stories impacting Upwork this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record full?year results and profitability improvement: Upwork reported record FY?2025 revenue and strong adjusted EBITDA margins, and Q4 showed operating profit improvement, which supports longer?term cash generation. Earnings Release
• Positive Sentiment: Management sees AI as a growth catalyst and expects growth to reaccelerate in 2026; FY?2026 EPS and revenue guidance are modestly above consensus, suggesting confidence in the full year despite near?term softness. AI Deep Dive
• Neutral Sentiment: AI traction: management highlighted AI?driven Gross Service Volume (GSV) growth and initiatives to make AI a tailwind — this is strategically positive but will take time to translate into durable margin/revenue upside. Earnings Highlights
• Negative Sentiment: Weak near?term guidance sparked the selloff: Q1?2026 guidance (EPS $0.26–$0.28 vs. consensus ~$0.36; revenue $192–197M vs. ~$201M) came in below Street expectations and triggered after?hours and intraday declines. Quarterly Reaction
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed/tepid Q4 metrics: Q4 revenue was roughly in line-to-slightly below expectations and reported EPS/earnings metrics were inconsistent across reports, contributing to investor disappointment. Earnings Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst and technical pressure: some firms cut price targets (UBS trimmed PT; Scotiabank lowered to $15) even as others kept buy ratings — plus technical coverage noted the stock plunged below key support levels. Analyst Notes Technical Note
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and short?term volatility: recent insider sales and a large after?hours drop amplified downside risk; valuation supporters point to low P/E and price/sales as a counterargument. Insider/Institutional Activity

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Upwork by 5.2% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,009,334 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,883,000 after buying an additional 147,852 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Upwork by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,828,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,534,000 after acquiring an additional 71,130 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its position in Upwork by 785.7% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,322,575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,962,000 after purchasing an additional 2,060,356 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Upwork by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,043,838 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,384,000 after purchasing an additional 20,370 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Upwork by 27.9% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,036,334 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,928,000 after purchasing an additional 225,856 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

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.