Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Now Covered by Analysts at Scotiabank

Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) in a research report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a sector perform rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Upwork from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Roth Mkm lowered their price target 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 restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $18.00 price target on shares of Upwork in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup raised their price target on Upwork from $11.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Upwork from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $18.58.

Upwork Price Performance

NASDAQ:UPWK opened at $13.56 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.86 and a beta of 1.61. Upwork has a 52-week low of $8.43 and a 52-week high of $18.14. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $15.86 and a 200 day moving average of $14.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 3.39 and a current ratio of 3.39.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.79. Upwork had a return on equity of 50.83% and a net margin of 28.02%. On average, research analysts expect that Upwork will post 0.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Upwork

In other news, VP Dave Bottoms sold 5,360 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.11, for a total value of $91,709.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 9,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $164,974.62. The trade was a 35.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Hayden Brown sold 20,000 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.84, for a total value of $336,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,229,420 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,703,432.80. This represents a 1.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 288,187 shares of company stock worth $4,769,213. Company insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Upwork

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Upwork by 45.4% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,791 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,497 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew 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 worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,851 shares during the last quarter. Nkcfo LLC bought a new stake in shares of Upwork in the fourth quarter worth about $82,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Upwork in the fourth quarter worth about $84,000. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Upwork in the fourth quarter worth about $97,000. 77.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Upwork

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.