Upwork Inc. $UPWK Shares Bought by Engineers Gate Manager LP

Key Points

• Engineers Gate Manager LP nearly doubled its Upwork stake in the second quarter, increasing holdings by 95.3% to 300,566 shares valued at approximately $2.5 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 77.71% of Upwork.
• Upwork reported quarterly EPS of $0.41, beating analyst expectations of $0.34, while revenue reached $191.66 million, down 1.7% year over year. Shares opened at $8.70, near the lower end of their 52-week range.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.05 after several firms lowered their targets. CEO Hayden Brown and CFO Erica Gessert also sold shares to cover tax obligations tied to vested equity awards.

Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its stake in shares of Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK - Free Report) by 95.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 300,566 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 146,666 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP owned 0.24% of Upwork worth $2,513,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC purchased a new position in Upwork in the 2nd quarter valued at $23,214,000. Summit Partners Public Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Upwork during the fourth quarter worth $40,136,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Upwork by 715.0% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 1,273,186 shares of the company's stock worth $10,644,000 after buying an additional 1,116,973 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of Upwork by 37.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,288,860 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,185,000 after buying an additional 900,318 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Upwork by 26.5% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,715,616 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,720,000 after buying an additional 779,506 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company's stock.

Upwork Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UPWK opened at $8.70 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.74. The company has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.30 and a beta of 1.01. Upwork Inc. has a 1 year low of $7.44 and a 1 year high of $22.84.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $191.66 million for the quarter. Upwork had a net margin of 12.94% and a return on equity of 16.70%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.35 EPS. 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

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on UPWK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $11.50 price target on shares of Upwork in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Scotiabank cut their price target on Upwork from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings lowered Upwork from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Upwork from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on Upwork from $15.00 to $11.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $13.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Hayden Brown sold 73,241 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.43, for a total transaction of $617,421.63. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 771,076 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,500,170.68. This trade represents a 8.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Erica Gessert sold 22,844 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.43, for a total value of $192,574.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 364,789 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,075,171.27. The trade was a 5.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 132,520 shares of company stock worth $1,108,000 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 4.90% of the company's stock.

About Upwork

Upwork Inc operates a global online work marketplace that connects businesses with independent professionals and agencies. The platform supports a wide range of services, including software development, design and creative work, marketing, writing and translation, consulting, customer support, and administrative services.

Through its marketplace, Upwork enables businesses to find talent, post projects, manage engagements, collaborate remotely, and process payments. The company also offers solutions designed for larger organizations, including tools for sourcing, onboarding, managing, and paying independent professionals at scale.

Upwork was formed through the 2014 merger of Elance and oDesk and adopted the Upwork name in 2015.

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