Hayden Brown Sells 123,152 Shares of Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Stock

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) CEO Hayden Brown sold 123,152 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total transaction of $1,699,497.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 776,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,709,724.60. The trade was a 13.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Hayden Brown also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, December 18th, Hayden Brown sold 23,147 shares of Upwork stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.59, for a total transaction of $476,596.73.
• On Tuesday, November 25th, Hayden Brown sold 75,000 shares of Upwork stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.78, for a total transaction of $1,483,500.00.
• On Wednesday, November 26th, Hayden Brown sold 275,000 shares of Upwork stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.43, for a total transaction of $5,343,250.00.
• On Friday, November 21st, Hayden Brown sold 60,000 shares of Upwork stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.20, for a total value of $1,092,000.00.

Upwork Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UPWK traded down $0.41 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $13.32. The company had a trading volume of 4,225,658 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,808,437. The company has a market capitalization of $1.74 billion, a PE ratio of 15.86 and a beta of 1.06. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $19.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.71. Upwork Inc. has a 1-year low of $11.13 and a 1-year high of $22.84.

Upwork announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 18% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on UPWK. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Upwork from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on shares of Upwork from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Citizens Jmp restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Finally, BTIG Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Upwork has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.60.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Accredited Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Upwork by 5,280.0% during the 3rd quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Upwork by 998.4% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,278 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Upwork by 594.4% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,165 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Upwork during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 2,405.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,684 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.