Citizens Jmp Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) Stock Price

Key Points

• Citizens Jmp lowered Upstart’s price target from $20 to $18 and maintained a “market underperform” rating, implying roughly 20% downside from the reported share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: Upstart has an overall “Hold” consensus rating and a $42.94 average price target, despite recent ratings ranging from “Sell” to “Buy.”
• Upstart reported quarterly revenue of $364.71 million, up 41.9% year over year, but missed EPS expectations ($0.16 versus $0.18); the stock was trading near its 52-week low at $22.60.

Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Citizens Jmp from $20.00 to $18.00 in a research report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "market underperform" rating on the stock. Citizens Jmp's price target points to a potential downside of 20.35% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Upstart from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of Upstart in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Upstart from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Upstart from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Upstart from $39.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Upstart presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $42.94.

Upstart Price Performance

Shares of Upstart stock opened at $22.60 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $2.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 2.43. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.15. Upstart has a fifty-two week low of $22.21 and a fifty-two week high of $55.22.

Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $364.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $354.74 million. Upstart had a return on equity of 7.13% and a net margin of 4.84%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 41.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.36 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Upstart will post 0.72 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Upstart

In related news, CEO Paul Gu bought 50,000 shares of Upstart stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $25.55 per share, with a total value of $1,277,500.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 130,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,321,500. This trade represents a 62.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Andrea Blankmeyer sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.33, for a total value of $87,990.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 152,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,464,260.64. This trade represents a 1.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 148,652 shares of company stock valued at $4,133,720. Insiders own 17.29% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Upstart

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Upstart by 274.4% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,842 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,350 shares in the last quarter. Osbon Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Upstart in the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new position in Upstart in the first quarter valued at $51,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in Upstart in the second quarter valued at $67,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP acquired a new stake in Upstart in the 2nd quarter valued at $74,000. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Upstart

Upstart Holdings, Inc NASDAQ: UPST operates an artificial intelligence-powered lending platform that connects consumers seeking credit with banks and credit unions. Its technology is designed to evaluate a broader range of borrower information than traditional credit-scoring methods, with the goal of helping lending partners assess risk and automate portions of the application and underwriting process.

The company's platform supports lending products including personal loans, automotive loans and refinancing, and home equity lines of credit.

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