Insider Selling: Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) CEO Sells 23,745 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• CEO Hayden Brown sold 23,745 shares on March 18 at an average price of $12.31 for ~$292,301, reducing her stake by 2.89% (she also sold 123,152 shares on Feb. 18).
• The company's Board authorized a $300 million share buyback on Feb. 18, allowing repurchases of up to 18% of outstanding shares, a signal the board views the stock as undervalued.
• Upwork shares trade near a one-year low (~$11.27) with a market cap of $1.47 billion, while analysts' consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $22.60.

Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK - Get Free Report) CEO Hayden Brown sold 23,745 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.31, for a total transaction of $292,300.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 798,732 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,832,390.92. This trade represents a 2.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Hayden Brown also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, February 18th, Hayden Brown sold 123,152 shares of Upwork stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total transaction of $1,699,497.60.

Upwork Stock Performance

NASDAQ UPWK traded down $0.08 during trading on Friday, reaching $11.27. 5,362,986 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,698,783. Upwork Inc. has a 1-year low of $11.09 and a 1-year high of $22.84. The company has a market cap of $1.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.42 and a beta of 1.07. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $16.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.55.

Upwork declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $300.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 18% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on UPWK shares. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Upwork from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Upwork from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Upwork from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Upwork presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $22.60.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Upwork

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPWK. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Upwork by 68.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 191,587 shares of the company's stock worth $2,501,000 after purchasing an additional 78,123 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Upwork by 5.1% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 74,466 shares of the company's stock valued at $972,000 after purchasing an additional 3,599 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Upwork by 364.0% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 789,638 shares of the company's stock worth $10,305,000 after purchasing an additional 619,459 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Upwork by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 338,680 shares of the company's stock worth $4,420,000 after buying an additional 31,378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning lifted its holdings in Upwork by 16.9% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 29,239 shares of the company's stock worth $393,000 after buying an additional 4,230 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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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