Upwork Inc. $UPWK Stock Holdings Reduced by Tenzing Global Management LLC

Key Points

• Tenzing Global Management LLC has significantly reduced its stake in Upwork Inc., selling 800,000 shares and retaining only 50,000, resulting in a 94.1% decrease in their holdings.
• Insider trading activity includes CEO Hayden Brown selling 60,000 shares, which represents a 5.20% decrease in his ownership position, valued at approximately $15 million.
• Upwork recently announced a share buyback program authorizing up to $100 million in repurchases, indicating management's belief that the stock is undervalued.

Tenzing Global Management LLC reduced its holdings in Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK - Free Report) by 94.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 50,000 shares of the company's stock after selling 800,000 shares during the quarter. Upwork makes up 0.5% of Tenzing Global Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Tenzing Global Management LLC's holdings in Upwork were worth $652,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in Upwork by 3,492.8% during the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 3,988 shares of the company's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 3,877 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 1,235.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,072 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 3,767 shares during the last quarter. Alpine Global Management LLC acquired a new position in Upwork during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $130,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Upwork during the 1st quarter worth $140,000. Finally, Alhambra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Upwork during the first quarter valued at $178,000. Institutional investors own 77.71% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Upwork from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Upwork in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $18.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, JMP Securities raised their price target on Upwork from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $18.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Dave Bottoms sold 11,562 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.51, for a total transaction of $156,202.62. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,250.95. The trade was a 55.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Olivier Marie sold 1,879 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the chief accounting officer owned 4,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at $62,532. The trade was a 28.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 159,608 shares of company stock worth $2,187,556. Company insiders own 7.50% of the company's stock.

Upwork Price Performance

NASDAQ:UPWK traded up $0.46 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $16.37. 2,426,195 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,516,826. The company has a quick ratio of 3.36, a current ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a market capitalization of $2.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.41 and a beta of 1.43. Upwork Inc. has a 12 month low of $9.04 and a 12 month high of $18.14. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $13.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $14.10.

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

Upwork announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, September 3rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Upwork Profile

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.