Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) CFO Erica Gessert Sells 26,292 Shares

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) CFO Erica Gessert sold 26,292 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total transaction of $362,829.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 298,386 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,117,726.80. This trade represents a 8.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Erica Gessert also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, December 18th, Erica Gessert sold 9,044 shares of Upwork stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.59, for a total transaction of $186,215.96.

Upwork Price Performance

UPWK traded up $0.08 during trading on Friday, hitting $13.40. 950,317 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,775,252. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $19.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.71. Upwork Inc. has a twelve month low of $11.13 and a twelve month high of $22.84. The company has a market cap of $1.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.96 and a beta of 1.06.

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

Key Headlines Impacting Upwork

Here are the key news stories impacting Upwork this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board authorizes a flexible $300 million share repurchase (authorizes buybacks of up to ~18% of outstanding stock), a material capital-return program that can reduce float and boost EPS over time. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction: coverage notes shares rose on the buyback news (investor sentiment is lifting near-term demand). Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and institutional context is mixed — consensus remains a modestly positive “moderate buy” with a long-run average target above current levels, and institutions hold ~78% of shares; analysts’ ratings/targets vary so the buyback may prompt revisions but not unanimous upgrades.
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling this week: CEO Hayden Brown sold 123,152 shares (~$1.7M at ~$13.80), CFO and other insiders also sold portions of their positions—these large disposals can be read as a cautionary signal by some investors. SEC filings for the CEO sale are available here: SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Technicals and liquidity: shares remain well below the 50-day moving average and volume today is thin versus average, which raises the risk of volatile moves despite the buyback announcement.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UPWK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Upwork from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of Upwork from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Upwork from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Upwork from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.60.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upwork

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its stake in shares of Upwork by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 32,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $638,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Straightline Group LLC grew its position in shares of Upwork by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Straightline Group LLC now owns 39,222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $777,000 after buying an additional 920 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Upwork by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 24,004 shares of the company’s stock valued at $446,000 after buying an additional 928 shares during the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp increased its stake in shares of Upwork by 0.4% in the second quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 264,789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,559,000 after buying an additional 987 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Upwork by 594.4% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,165 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

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.