Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Shares of Upstart Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPST) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 5,553,377 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 35% from the previous session’s volume of 4,123,049 shares.The stock last traded at $33.5470 and had previously closed at $38.96.

Upstart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Upstart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company issued FY2026 revenue guidance above Street expectations (roughly $1.4B vs. ~ $1.2B consensus), a clear upside to growth outlook that initially supported after-hours gains. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Leadership evolution announced (appointment of Gu as CEO), which can be viewed positively if investors see it as strengthening execution. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Company released full Q4 results, slide deck and earnings call materials for detailed metrics — useful for modeling but not a headline catalyst by itself. Slide Deck
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts show mixed thumbs-up: Needham reaffirmed a buy rating with a $56 PT, while Truist trimmed its target from $59 to $49 (still a buy), leaving divergent upside estimates that may keep trading choppy. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted Q4 EPS of $0.46 missed the consensus by a penny (est. $0.47); GAAP figures and one-offs create conflicting headlines (some outlets reported $0.17), which confused investors and pressured the stock. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual options activity — a large block of put buying — indicates increased bearish positioning ahead/after earnings, adding downside momentum and higher volatility. Article Title

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on UPST shares. Morgan Stanley set a $45.00 price objective on Upstart in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Upstart from $100.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. BTIG Research restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Upstart in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Upstart from $80.00 to $56.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Upstart from $59.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $59.45.

Upstart Stock Down 15.1%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $45.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $52.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 150.29 and a beta of 2.38.

Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.47 by ($0.30). Upstart had a net margin of 3.33% and a return on equity of 3.68%. The business had revenue of $296.09 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $288.54 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.26 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 35.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Upstart Holdings, Inc. will post -0.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Upstart

In other Upstart news, insider Natalia Mirgorodskaya sold 821 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.62, for a total transaction of $30,065.02. Following the transaction, the insider owned 27,160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $994,599.20. The trade was a 2.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Sanjay Datta sold 13,624 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.58, for a total transaction of $498,365.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 284,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,398,962.40. This represents a 4.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 16,707 shares of company stock worth $633,080 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 16.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPST. Cresset Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Upstart by 3.3% during the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 5,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $339,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Upstart by 1.8% in the second quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 11,382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $736,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Upstart by 3.0% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $386,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in Upstart by 29.1% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 1,068 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC grew its stake in Upstart by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 5,399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $349,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.01% of the company’s stock.

Upstart Company Profile

Upstart Holdings, Inc operates a cloud-based lending marketplace that leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to assess borrower creditworthiness. The company partners with banks and credit unions, providing its proprietary AI models and underwriting platform to facilitate consumer credit products. By focusing on non‐traditional data points—such as education, employment history and other real‐time indicators—Upstart seeks to improve approval rates and lower loss rates compared with conventional credit scoring methods.

Upstart’s core offering centers on unsecured personal loans, which borrowers can use for purposes such as debt consolidation, home improvements or major purchases.