Jump Financial LLC Purchases 119,001 Shares of Upwork Inc. $UPWK

Key Points

• Jump Financial LLC significantly increased its position in Upwork Inc. by 93.8%, acquiring an additional 119,001 shares to own a total of 245,803 shares, valued at approximately $3,208,000.
• Insider trading activity included Director Leela Srinivasan selling 3,314 shares at $15.36, resulting in a decrease of 4.00% in her ownership.
• Upwork's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $0.35, exceeding analysts' expectations, while the company also predicts 0.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jump Financial LLC increased its position in Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK - Free Report) by 93.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 245,803 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 119,001 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC owned about 0.19% of Upwork worth $3,208,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of UPWK. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Upwork by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 27,228 shares of the company's stock valued at $347,000 after purchasing an additional 1,465 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 67,716 shares of the company's stock worth $1,107,000 after buying an additional 2,148 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Upwork by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 70,867 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,159,000 after buying an additional 2,695 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in Upwork by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 65,775 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,075,000 after buying an additional 3,543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Upwork by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 75,934 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,242,000 after buying an additional 3,692 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.71% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Leela Srinivasan sold 3,314 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.36, for a total transaction of $50,903.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 79,469 shares in the company, valued at $1,220,643.84. This trade represents a 4.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Olivier Marie sold 1,879 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.50, for a total value of $25,366.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 4,632 shares in the company, valued at $62,532. This trade represents a 28.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 169,442 shares of company stock worth $2,337,303 in the last 90 days. 7.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $19.00 price target on shares of Upwork in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Upwork from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Citigroup reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Upwork in a report on Friday, May 16th. JMP Securities upped their price target on Upwork from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $18.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $18.67.

Upwork Stock Up 1.2%

NASDAQ UPWK opened at $15.09 on Wednesday. Upwork Inc. has a 12 month low of $8.90 and a 12 month high of $18.14. The company has a current ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a PE ratio of 8.67 and a beta of 1.38. The stock's 50 day moving average is $13.38 and its 200 day moving average is $14.11.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $194.94 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $187.56 million. Upwork had a net margin of 31.75% and a return on equity of 44.83%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.26 EPS. The company's revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Upwork Inc. will post 0.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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