Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) Stock Has Average Price Target of $13.55

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $13.55.

Several research firms recently commented on UPWK. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Upwork from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. BTIG Research restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Upwork in a research report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on shares of Upwork from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Upwork from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $11.50 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th.

Insider Activity

In other Upwork news, COO Anthony Kappus sold 45,732 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.45, for a total transaction of $386,435.40. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 76,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $645,089.90. This represents a 37.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Erica Gessert sold 9,336 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.45, for a total transaction of $78,889.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 373,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,156,801.70. This trade represents a 2.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last three months, insiders have sold 178,868 shares of company stock worth $1,509,462. Corporate insiders own 4.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upwork

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Upwork by 434.4% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,881 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 1,529 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Upwork by 43.7% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,575 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,392 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Upwork by 40.7% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 5,356 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 1,550 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Upwork by 123.0% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 8,944 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 4,933 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Global Investments bought a new position in Upwork in the 2nd quarter valued at about $89,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Upwork Trading Up 0.4%

NASDAQ:UPWK opened at $9.78 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.07 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $8.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.29. Upwork has a twelve month low of $7.44 and a twelve month high of $22.84.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.09. Upwork had a net margin of 13.53% and a return on equity of 16.92%. The firm had revenue of $185.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $180.22 million.

About Upwork

Upwork operates an online marketplace that connects businesses with independent professionals and agencies for contract and project-based work. The platform supports hiring across areas such as software development, design, marketing, writing, customer service and consulting. Its services include the Talent Marketplace, where clients can find and hire professionals, and Project Catalog, which offers predefined services with set scopes. Upwork also provides solutions for larger organizations seeking to source and manage freelance talent.