Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Hold”

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Saturday morning.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on Upwork from $25.00 to $15.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research cut Upwork from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Roth Mkm cut Upwork from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $10.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday. Finally, Citigroup cut Upwork from a “neutral” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Upwork has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.30.

Upwork Price Performance

Shares of UPWK stock opened at $8.82 on Friday. Upwork has a 1 year low of $7.44 and a 1 year high of $22.84. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $11.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.02. The company has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a PE ratio of 10.89 and a beta of 1.07.

Upwork declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 18th that allows the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 18% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 123,152 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total value of $1,699,497.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 776,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,709,724.60. This represents a 13.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Dave Bottoms sold 17,013 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total value of $234,779.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 15,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $220,717.20. This trade represents a 51.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 235,186 shares of company stock valued at $3,156,199. 7.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Accredited Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Upwork by 5,280.0% in the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its stake in Upwork by 998.4% in 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 in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Upwork by 594.4% in 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. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in Upwork by 2,405.7% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,754 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,684 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Upwork by 379.2% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,840 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,456 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Upwork News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Upwork this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Upwork reported Q1 revenue growth of 1.4% year over year and raised its full-year adjusted EBITDA guidance, which suggests the company is still focused on profitability. Upwork Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms still maintain bullish views despite cutting targets, including Needham keeping a Buy rating but lowering its target to $15, reflecting continued long-term confidence but less optimism on near-term growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: Upwork’s Q1 EPS beat some expectations, but revenue was roughly in line with estimates, leaving investors focused more on the outlook than the headline bottom-line result. Upwork earnings report
• Negative Sentiment: Management’s Q2 revenue guidance came in well below Wall Street expectations, raising concerns that growth is slowing more than expected.
• Negative Sentiment: FY 2026 revenue guidance also missed consensus, reinforcing worries that the company’s top-line outlook is weaker than analysts had hoped.
• Negative Sentiment: Citizens JMP and Roth MKM both downgraded the stock, while Needham cut its price target sharply, adding to the pressure on shares.
• Negative Sentiment: Post-earnings reports also highlighted softer profitability metrics and restructuring plans, which may be weighing on sentiment toward UPWK.

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.