Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Receives “Buy” Rating from Needham & Company LLC

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by Needham & Company LLC in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Needham & Company LLC’s target price suggests a potential upside of 33.05% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research downgraded Upwork from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Upwork in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Upwork from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on Upwork from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Upwork from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Upwork currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.91.

Upwork Trading Down 0.7%

UPWK stock opened at $18.79 on Tuesday. Upwork has a 12 month low of $11.13 and a 12 month high of $22.84. The company has a market cap of $2.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.74 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $20.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $17.72.

Insider Buying and Selling at Upwork

In other Upwork news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 275,000 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.43, for a total value of $5,343,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 697,894 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,560,080.42. This trade represents a 28.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gary Steele sold 12,500 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 85,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,490,608.79. The trade was a 12.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 523,248 shares of company stock valued at $10,029,741. Insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Upwork

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,989,217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $297,086,000 after buying an additional 322,455 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management raised its position in shares of Upwork by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 6,537,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $129,569,000 after purchasing an additional 23,900 shares during the last quarter. Ancient Art L.P. lifted its position in shares of Upwork by 13.1% in the third quarter. Ancient Art L.P. now owns 4,268,667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,269,000 after acquiring an additional 494,759 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted 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 purchasing an additional 147,852 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 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 worth $52,534,000 after acquiring an additional 71,130 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Upwork

Here are the key news stories impacting Upwork this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record full‑year results and strong profitability — Upwork reported record 2025 revenue of $787.8M and robust adjusted EBITDA (29% margin for the year; Q4 adjusted EBITDA $52.9M), which supports longer‑term cash generation and operating leverage. GlobeNewswire: Upwork Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: FY‑2026 guidance modestly above consensus — management gave full‑year EPS guidance of $1.43–$1.48 (vs. ~$1.41 consensus) and revenue guidance $835–$850M (vs. ~$832.5M consensus), which suggests the company expects continued annual growth. Yahoo Finance: Q4 highlights & guidance
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 top‑line roughly in line but mixed metric reporting — Q4 revenue was $198.4M (+3.6% YoY), essentially in‑line with estimates, while gross profit and operating profit improved. Some outlets emphasize an adjusted/operating beat, others highlight weaker GAAP metrics — creating mixed readthroughs. Quiver Quantitative: Q4 results summary
• Negative Sentiment: Disappointing Q1 guidance — management lowered near‑term expectations, issuing Q1 EPS guidance of $0.26–$0.28 and revenue $192–$197M versus consensus of ~$0.36 EPS and ~$201M revenue; this guidance shortfall is the primary catalyst for the selloff. MSN: Upwork stock plummets after hours — here’s why
• Negative Sentiment: GAAP EPS miss / headline confusion — some reports show GAAP diluted EPS of $0.12 (well below certain consensus/adjusted figures), contributing to investor confusion and negative sentiment when headlines contrast adjusted vs. GAAP metrics. Zacks: Upwork misses Q4 earnings estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling and post‑close weakness — reports of concentrated insider share sales in recent months and a sharp after‑hours drop (~20%+ in some headlines) amplified selling pressure following the release. Quiver Quantitative: insider activity and stock reaction

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.