Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Sets New 1-Year High - Here's Why

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

UPWK has been the subject of a number of research reports. JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of Upwork from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. BTIG Research raised their target price on Upwork from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price target on Upwork from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Upwork from $11.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their target price on shares of Upwork from $13.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Upwork has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $18.36.

Upwork Price Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $14.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.88. The company has a quick ratio of 3.18, a current ratio of 3.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.32 and a beta of 1.58.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $193.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $185.55 million. Upwork had a net margin of 11.26% and a return on equity of 22.84%. Upwork's revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.12 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Upwork Inc. will post 0.65 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Dave Bottoms sold 10,508 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.86, for a total transaction of $166,656.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Olivier Marie sold 9,153 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.92, for a total transaction of $145,715.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,294 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,600.48. This represents a 87.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 127,726 shares of company stock worth $2,033,486 in the last three months. Insiders own 7.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Upwork by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 226,375 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,366,000 after buying an additional 27,639 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Upwork in the third quarter worth $355,000. XTX Topco Ltd increased its position in Upwork by 198.6% during the third quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 60,509 shares of the company's stock valued at $632,000 after acquiring an additional 40,242 shares during the last quarter. Tabor Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in Upwork during the third quarter valued at $993,000. Finally, Tenzing Global Management LLC lifted its holdings in Upwork by 20.0% in the third quarter. Tenzing Global Management LLC now owns 450,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,702,000 after acquiring an additional 75,000 shares during the period. 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.