Insider Selling: Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Insider Sells $211,417.99 in Stock

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) insider Dave Bottoms sold 15,649 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.51, for a total transaction of $211,417.99. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 345 shares in the company, valued at $4,660.95. This represents a 97.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Dave Bottoms also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, February 18th, Dave Bottoms sold 17,013 shares of Upwork stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total value of $234,779.40.
• On Friday, December 19th, Dave Bottoms sold 9,622 shares of Upwork stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.66, for a total value of $198,790.52.
• On Thursday, December 18th, Dave Bottoms sold 11,285 shares of Upwork stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.59, for a total value of $232,358.15.

Upwork Price Performance

Upwork stock traded down $0.41 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $13.32. 4,225,658 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,808,437. Upwork Inc. has a 12-month low of $11.13 and a 12-month high of $22.84. The company has a market capitalization of $1.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.86 and a beta of 1.06. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $19.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $17.71.

Upwork announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $300.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 18% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upwork

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UPWK. Accredited Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Upwork by 5,280.0% during 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 during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Upwork by 594.4% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,165 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Upwork by 998.4% during the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,278 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position 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 worth $33,000 after buying an additional 1,684 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Upwork by 379.2% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,840 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 1,456 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Upwork from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. UBS Group cut their price target on Upwork from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Upwork from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.60.

About Upwork

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.