Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Issues Q1 2026 Earnings Guidance

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) updated its first quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Monday. The company provided EPS guidance of 0.260-0.280 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 0.360. The company issued revenue guidance of $192.0 million-$197.0 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $201.0 million. Upwork also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 1.430-1.480 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on UPWK. Citigroup dropped their target price on Upwork from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Upwork from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $23.00.

Upwork Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UPWK opened at $15.20 on Wednesday. Upwork has a 1 year low of $11.13 and a 1 year high of $22.84. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $20.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.10 and a beta of 1.06.

Insider Activity at Upwork

In related news, Director Gary Steele sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.51, for a total value of $218,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 85,129 shares in the company, valued at $1,490,608.79. This trade represents a 12.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Erica Gessert sold 18,493 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.70, for a total transaction of $308,833.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 237,612 shares in the company, valued at $3,968,120.40. The trade was a 7.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 523,248 shares of company stock worth $10,029,741. 7.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Upwork

Here are the key news stories impacting Upwork this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record full‑year results and profitability improvement: Upwork reported record FY‑2025 revenue and strong adjusted EBITDA margins, and Q4 showed operating profit improvement, which supports longer‑term cash generation. Earnings Release
• Positive Sentiment: Management sees AI as a growth catalyst and expects growth to reaccelerate in 2026; FY‑2026 EPS and revenue guidance are modestly above consensus, suggesting confidence in the full year despite near‑term softness. AI Deep Dive
• Neutral Sentiment: AI traction: management highlighted AI‑driven Gross Service Volume (GSV) growth and initiatives to make AI a tailwind — this is strategically positive but will take time to translate into durable margin/revenue upside. Earnings Highlights
• Negative Sentiment: Weak near‑term guidance sparked the selloff: Q1‑2026 guidance (EPS $0.26–$0.28 vs. consensus ~$0.36; revenue $192–197M vs. ~$201M) came in below Street expectations and triggered after‑hours and intraday declines. Quarterly Reaction
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed/tepid Q4 metrics: Q4 revenue was roughly in line-to-slightly below expectations and reported EPS/earnings metrics were inconsistent across reports, contributing to investor disappointment. Earnings Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst and technical pressure: some firms cut price targets (UBS trimmed PT; Scotiabank lowered to $15) even as others kept buy ratings — plus technical coverage noted the stock plunged below key support levels. Analyst Notes Technical Note
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and short‑term volatility: recent insider sales and a large after‑hours drop amplified downside risk; valuation supporters point to low P/E and price/sales as a counterargument. Insider/Institutional Activity

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UPWK. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Upwork by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,009,334 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,883,000 after buying an additional 147,852 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Upwork by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,828,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,534,000 after acquiring an additional 71,130 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners increased its holdings in Upwork by 785.7% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,322,575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,962,000 after acquiring an additional 2,060,356 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Upwork by 2.0% during the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,043,838 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,384,000 after acquiring an additional 20,370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its position in Upwork by 27.9% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,036,334 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,928,000 after acquiring an additional 225,856 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

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.