Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Earns "Overweight" Rating from Piper Sandler

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "overweight" rating restated by analysts at Piper Sandler in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $18.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $13.00. Piper Sandler's price objective suggests a potential upside of 10.77% from the stock's current price.

UPWK has been the topic of several other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Upwork from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Upwork from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Roth Mkm reduced their price target on Upwork from $19.00 to $13.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Upwork from $15.00 to $11.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on Upwork from $19.00 to $15.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Upwork currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $17.00.

Upwork Price Performance

Shares of Upwork stock traded up $1.67 during trading on Thursday, hitting $16.25. 9,730,233 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,164,720. The company has a quick ratio of 3.00, a current ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market cap of $2.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.75 and a beta of 1.49. The firm's fifty day moving average is $10.86 and its 200-day moving average is $10.92. Upwork has a 52 week low of $8.43 and a 52 week high of $17.79.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $193.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $193.05 million. Upwork had a return on equity of 20.75% and a net margin of 10.00%. The company's revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.03) EPS. Research analysts expect that Upwork will post 0.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 9,444 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.57, for a total value of $99,823.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,178,850 shares in the company, valued at $12,460,444.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 9,444 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.57, for a total value of $99,823.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,178,850 shares in the company, valued at $12,460,444.50. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Erica Gessert sold 4,491 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.57, for a total value of $47,469.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 111,255 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,175,965.35. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 176,783 shares of company stock worth $1,800,221 in the last quarter. 7.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Upwork during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new position in Upwork during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Upwork during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Quarry LP increased its position in Upwork by 104.2% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,350 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 2,220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in Upwork by 45.4% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,791 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 1,497 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.