Quantbot Technologies LP Makes New Investment in Upwork Inc. $UPWK

Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 84,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,136,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in UPWK. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp raised its position in Upwork by 0.4% during the second quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 264,789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,559,000 after purchasing an additional 987 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. raised its position in Upwork by 11.1% during the second quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 14,393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $196,000 after purchasing an additional 1,443 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC lifted its stake in Upwork by 415.9% during the second quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 2,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 2,038 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Upwork in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Upwork news, CFO Erica Gessert sold 18,493 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.70, for a total transaction of $308,833.10. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 237,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,968,120.40. This represents a 7.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Hayden Brown sold 275,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 697,894 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,560,080.42. The trade was a 28.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 582,132 shares of company stock worth $11,080,002 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Upwork from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on Upwork from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. JMP Securities lifted their price target on shares of Upwork from $20.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Upwork from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.92.

Upwork Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UPWK opened at $19.88 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.60 billion, a PE ratio of 11.36 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $17.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.73. Upwork Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $11.13 and a fifty-two week high of $21.38.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.04). Upwork had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 31.63%.The firm had revenue of $201.73 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $193.33 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.30 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. Upwork has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.350-1.370 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 0.310-0.330 EPS. Research analysts predict that Upwork Inc. will post 0.84 EPS for the current year.

Upwork announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, September 3rd that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 4.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Upwork 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.