Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $17.91 and last traded at $17.71, with a volume of 714429 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.04.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on UPWK shares. 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 report on Thursday, November 7th. JMP Securities raised their price target on Upwork from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. BTIG Research upped their price objective on Upwork from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Roth Mkm increased 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, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Upwork from $11.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Upwork currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $18.36.

Upwork Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 3.18 and a current ratio of 3.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.17 billion, a PE ratio of 25.78 and a beta of 1.58. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.92.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.03. Upwork had a net margin of 11.26% and a return on equity of 22.84%. The business had revenue of $193.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $185.55 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.12 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Upwork Inc. will post 0.65 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 8,997 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.12, for a total value of $154,028.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,238,156 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,197,230.72. This represents a 0.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Dave Bottoms sold 10,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.86, for a total value of $166,656.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 127,726 shares of company stock worth $2,033,486 over the last three months. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Upwork

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Upwork by 32.9% in the second quarter. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP now owns 3,320,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,700,000 after acquiring an additional 822,518 shares during the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Upwork in the 3rd quarter valued at about $8,369,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Upwork by 71.0% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,635,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,572,000 after purchasing an additional 679,028 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Upwork by 2,216.8% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Upwork by 27.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,806,969 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,424,000 after buying an additional 389,006 shares in the last quarter. 77.71% of the stock is currently 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.