Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $12.76, but opened at $13.49. Upwork shares last traded at $13.6940, with a volume of 2,707,311 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on UPWK shares. Zacks Research lowered Upwork from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Upwork from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on Upwork from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $22.00 target price on Upwork in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Upwork from $22.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.60.

Upwork Stock Up 7.1%

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $19.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.77. The company has a market cap of $1.79 billion, a PE ratio of 16.38 and a beta of 1.06.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Upwork news, insider Dave Bottoms sold 9,622 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.66, for a total transaction of $198,790.52. Following the transaction, the insider owned 345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,127.70. This trade represents a 96.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gary Steele sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.51, for a total value of $218,875.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 85,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,490,608.79. This represents a 12.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 475,598 shares of company stock worth $9,231,586 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Upwork by 68.9% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 191,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,501,000 after buying an additional 78,123 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 74,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $972,000 after acquiring an additional 3,599 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Upwork by 364.0% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 789,638 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,305,000 after acquiring an additional 619,459 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Upwork by 10.2% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 338,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,420,000 after purchasing an additional 31,378 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in shares of Upwork during the second quarter worth approximately $211,000. 77.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Upwork Company Profile

Upwork Inc operates a leading online talent marketplace that connects businesses with independent professionals worldwide. Through its digital platform, the company enables clients across industries—including technology, marketing, creative services and customer support—to source, hire and manage freelance talent on demand. Key features of the Upwork platform include streamlined job posting, proposal evaluation, time-tracking tools, invoicing and secure payment processing, all designed to simplify collaboration between clients and remote workers.

The company traces its roots to the merger of two pioneering freelance marketplaces, Elance (founded in 1998) and oDesk (founded in 2003), which combined in 2015 to form a unified entity.