Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Cut to “Neutral” at BTIG Research

BTIG Research cut shares of Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note published on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lifted their target price on shares of Upwork from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Upwork in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Upwork from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Upwork from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $18.58.

Upwork Stock Down 5.3 %

UPWK stock opened at $11.87 on Friday. Upwork has a twelve month low of $8.43 and a twelve month high of $18.14. The company has a quick ratio of 3.39, a current ratio of 3.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a market cap of $1.61 billion, a PE ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 1.60. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.58.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.79. Upwork had a return on equity of 50.83% and a net margin of 28.02%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Upwork will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Upwork

In other news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 21,122 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.15, for a total value of $341,120.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,275,083 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,592,590.45. This trade represents a 1.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Dave Bottoms sold 5,411 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.07, for a total transaction of $70,721.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $125,380.51. The trade was a 36.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 193,365 shares of company stock valued at $3,050,760 over the last three months. 7.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Upwork

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of Upwork by 42.6% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 6,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,851 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Upwork by 39.6% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,000 after buying an additional 1,899 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Upwork by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 67,716 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,107,000 after buying an additional 2,148 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in Upwork by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 178,202 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,914,000 after buying an additional 2,387 shares during the period. Finally, King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its holdings in Upwork by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 263,802 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,313,000 after acquiring an additional 2,636 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

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.