Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) had its price objective hoisted by Citigroup from $11.00 to $19.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on UPWK. JMP Securities increased their target price on Upwork from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Roth Mkm upped their price target on Upwork from $13.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Upwork from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Upwork from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Upwork from $15.00 to $11.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $17.73.

Upwork Stock Performance

UPWK opened at $16.97 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.27 billion, a PE ratio of 26.94 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a current ratio of 3.18, a quick ratio of 3.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Upwork has a twelve month low of $8.43 and a twelve month high of $17.79. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $12.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $11.36.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $193.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $185.55 million. Upwork had a return on equity of 22.84% and a net margin of 11.26%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.12 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Upwork will post 0.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Upwork

In other Upwork news, CFO Erica Gessert sold 4,491 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 111,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,175,965.35. The trade was a 3.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Hayden Brown sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.01, for a total transaction of $200,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,170,561 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,717,315.61. The trade was a 1.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 199,808 shares of company stock worth $2,501,163. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. KBC Group NV lifted its position in Upwork by 45.4% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,791 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,497 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of Upwork by 42.6% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 6,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 1,851 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in Upwork by 0.6% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 318,659 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,426,000 after acquiring an additional 1,996 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Upwork by 3.2% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 66,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $718,000 after acquiring an additional 2,063 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lifted its holdings in Upwork by 18.4% in the third quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 13,719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,000 after acquiring an additional 2,129 shares during the period. 77.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.