Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Acquires Shares of 162,078 Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK)

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 162,078 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,987,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Raymond James & Associates bought a new stake in shares of Upwork in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $312,000. Shaker Investments LLC OH raised its position in Upwork by 78.9% in the 4th quarter. Shaker Investments LLC OH now owns 117,718 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,750,000 after purchasing an additional 51,931 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in Upwork in the fourth quarter worth about $330,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of Upwork during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Upwork during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Upwork Stock Up 4.9 %

Upwork stock opened at $12.12 on Thursday. Upwork Inc. has a 1-year low of $9.56 and a 1-year high of $16.36. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $10.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 2.93 and a quick ratio of 2.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.63 and a beta of 1.57.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $190.94 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.71 million. Upwork had a net margin of 6.70% and a return on equity of 13.96%. Equities research analysts forecast that Upwork Inc. will post 0.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Dave Bottoms sold 5,684 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.22, for a total transaction of $58,090.48. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 9,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $95,240.18. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CAO Olivier Marie sold 3,106 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.13, for a total transaction of $37,675.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $91,763.45. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Dave Bottoms sold 5,684 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.22, for a total transaction of $58,090.48. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 9,319 shares in the company, valued at $95,240.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 195,339 shares of company stock valued at $2,269,475. Insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UPWK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on Upwork in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $12.00 price target for the company. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $20.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Upwork from $18.00 to $15.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. BTIG Research raised Upwork from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $16.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 price target on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.20.

Upwork Profile

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.