Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Lowered to Neutral Rating by BTIG Research

BTIG Research downgraded shares of Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report published on Friday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Upwork from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Upwork from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Roth Mkm lowered their price objective on Upwork from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $18.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $18.58.

Upwork Stock Performance

Shares of UPWK opened at $11.87 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 3.39 and a quick ratio of 3.39. Upwork has a one year low of $8.43 and a one year high of $18.14. The business has a fifty day moving average of $14.77 and a 200 day moving average of $14.52.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.79. Upwork had a net margin of 28.02% and a return on equity of 50.83%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Upwork will post 0.84 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Upwork

In other Upwork news, CFO Erica Gessert sold 13,765 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.15, for a total transaction of $222,304.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 156,828 shares in the company, valued at $2,532,772.20. This trade represents a 8.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Dave Bottoms sold 5,411 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.07, for a total value of $70,721.77. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,593 shares in the company, 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 193,365 shares of company stock valued at $3,050,760. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upwork

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nkcfo LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Upwork during the 4th quarter valued at about $82,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Upwork during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $84,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Upwork in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $97,000. Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of Upwork by 42.6% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 6,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,851 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Upwork by 39.6% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,899 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Upwork Company 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.