Hayden Brown Sells 9,075 Shares of Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) Stock

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) CEO Hayden Brown sold 9,075 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.07, for a total value of $118,610.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,223,741 shares in the company, valued at $15,994,294.87. The trade was a 0.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Hayden Brown also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, March 7th, Hayden Brown sold 60,000 shares of Upwork stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.20, for a total value of $852,000.00.
• On Tuesday, February 18th, Hayden Brown sold 21,122 shares of Upwork stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.15, for a total value of $341,120.30.

Upwork Price Performance

UPWK stock opened at $13.57 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $15.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.30. Upwork Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.43 and a 52-week high of $18.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.87 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 3.39 and a current ratio of 3.39.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.79. Upwork had a net margin of 28.02% and a return on equity of 50.83%. Equities research analysts forecast that Upwork Inc. will post 0.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upwork

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Upwork by 45.4% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,791 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 1,497 shares during the last quarter. Nkcfo LLC purchased a new position in Upwork in the 4th quarter worth approximately $82,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Upwork in the 4th quarter worth approximately $84,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new position in Upwork in the 4th quarter worth approximately $97,000. Finally, Quarry LP grew its position in Upwork by 42.6% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 6,201 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,851 shares during the period. 77.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on UPWK shares. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Roth Mkm cut their price objective on Upwork from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Upwork from $11.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Scotiabank started coverage on Upwork in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $15.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Upwork from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $18.58.

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.