Upwork Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:UPWK)

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors acquired 5,430 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 417% compared to the typical volume of 1,050 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at Upwork

In related news, CFO Erica Gessert sold 20,353 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.65, for a total value of $196,406.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 107,313 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,035,570.45. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Erica Gessert sold 20,353 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.65, for a total transaction of $196,406.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 107,313 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,035,570.45. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Hayden Brown sold 31,506 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.65, for a total transaction of $304,032.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,190,561 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,488,913.65. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 176,783 shares of company stock worth $1,800,221. Insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Creative Planning acquired a new position in Upwork in the third quarter worth $207,000. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 71.9% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 2,467 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 85.3% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 40,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $420,000 after buying an additional 18,500 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in shares of Upwork during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,279,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Upwork by 104.2% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 2,220 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on UPWK shares. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on Upwork from $19.00 to $15.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Upwork from $15.00 to $11.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Upwork from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Upwork from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Upwork from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $15.27.

Upwork Stock Up 22.0 %

NASDAQ UPWK traded up $2.21 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $12.26. 5,770,000 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,061,443. The company has a market cap of $1.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.89 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 3.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $10.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.77. Upwork has a 1-year low of $8.43 and a 1-year high of $16.36.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.03. Upwork had a net margin of 10.00% and a return on equity of 20.75%. The firm had revenue of $193.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $193.05 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.03) EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Upwork will post 0.51 EPS for the current year.

Upwork Company 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.