Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Price Target Lowered to $15.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) had its price objective lowered by Royal Bank of Canada from $18.00 to $15.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a sector perform rating on the stock.

UPWK has been the topic of a number of other reports. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a buy rating and issued a $20.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research report on Thursday. BTIG Research upgraded shares of Upwork from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $16.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group raised Upwork from a hold rating to a buy rating and increased their target price for the stock from $13.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Upwork from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, JMP Securities increased their price objective on Upwork from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a market outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Upwork has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $17.30.

Upwork Stock Performance

Shares of Upwork stock opened at $13.05 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.93, a current ratio of 2.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Upwork has a 52 week low of $7.54 and a 52 week high of $16.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $12.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.83 and a beta of 1.66.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $183.93 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $178.43 million. Upwork had a return on equity of 13.96% and a net margin of 6.70%. Research analysts forecast that Upwork will post 0.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 43,714 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.86, for a total value of $562,162.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,165,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,994,502.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 67,531 shares of company stock worth $851,894. Company insiders own 9.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Upwork

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Upwork by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,226,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,414,000 after purchasing an additional 660,966 shares during the period. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Upwork by 2,216.0% during the third quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,893,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,231,000 after buying an additional 3,725,442 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Upwork by 239.9% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,252,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,491,000 after acquiring an additional 1,589,693 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new position in Upwork in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $16,987,000. Finally, Mak Capital One LLC bought a new stake in shares of Upwork in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $15,528,000. Institutional investors own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

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.