Anthony Ray Kappus Sells 1,964 Shares of Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Stock

Key Points

• Upwork COO Anthony Ray Kappus sold 1,964 shares at an average price of $8.43, worth $16,556.52, reducing his holdings by 21.4% to 7,214 shares. The sale was made to cover tax withholding tied to vested equity awards.
• Upwork shares traded around $8.66, near the lower end of their 52-week range of $7.44 to $22.84. The company recently beat quarterly EPS estimates, but revenue declined 1.7% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $13.05 after several firms cut targets or downgraded the stock. Institutional investors own approximately 77.71% of Upwork’s shares.

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK - Get Free Report) COO Anthony Ray Kappus sold 1,964 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.43, for a total value of $16,556.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 7,214 shares in the company, valued at $60,814.02. This represents a 21.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Anthony Ray Kappus also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Saturday, July 18th, Anthony Ray Kappus sold 558 shares of Upwork stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.06, for a total value of $5,055.48.

Upwork Trading Down 0.3%

NASDAQ UPWK traded down $0.03 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $8.66. The company had a trading volume of 1,798,371 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,843,327. Upwork Inc. has a 1-year low of $7.44 and a 1-year high of $22.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.25 and a beta of 0.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $8.83 and a 200 day moving average of $10.59.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. Upwork had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 16.70%. The business had revenue of $191.66 million for the quarter. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.35 earnings per share. Upwork's revenue was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Upwork has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.380-1.430 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.310-0.330 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on UPWK shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Upwork from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Upwork from $17.00 to $10.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on shares of Upwork from $15.00 to $11.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Citizens Jmp downgraded shares of Upwork from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Upwork from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $13.05.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upwork

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 32,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $638,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Straightline Group LLC lifted its stake in Upwork by 2.4% in the fourth 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. boosted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 4.0% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 24,004 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 928 shares during the period. Maridea Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 11.0% in the first quarter. Maridea Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,621 shares of the company's stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 1,152 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew 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. Hedge funds and other 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.

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