Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Upstart Call Options (NASDAQ:UPST)

Key Points

• Unusual options activity: Investors purchased 44,446 Upstart call options, about 156% above the stock’s average daily call volume.
• Stock performance and fundamentals: Upstart shares fell to $21.31 amid substantially heavier-than-usual trading volume. The company’s latest revenue rose 41.9% year over year to $364.71 million, but earnings per share slightly missed estimates.
• Mixed analyst outlook: Upstart has an overall “Hold” consensus rating and a $42.94 average price target, with seven Buy, seven Hold, and three Sell ratings. CEO Paul Gu purchased 50,000 shares, while other insiders sold shares in the past 90 days.

Upstart Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock investors bought 44,446 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 156% compared to the average daily volume of 17,356 call options.

Upstart Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UPST traded down $1.71 on Monday, hitting $21.31. The stock had a trading volume of 12,207,678 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,645,611. The stock has a market cap of $2.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 2.48. Upstart has a 1 year low of $20.97 and a 1 year high of $52.10. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $25.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.02.

Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.02). Upstart had a return on equity of 7.13% and a net margin of 4.84%. The business had revenue of $364.71 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $354.74 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.36 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 41.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Upstart will post 0.72 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on UPST. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Upstart in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Loop Capital started coverage on Upstart in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $34.00 target price for the company. Citizens Jmp reduced their target price on Upstart from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a "market underperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings lowered Upstart from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "market underperform" rating on shares of Upstart in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Upstart has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $42.94.

Insider Activity at Upstart

In other news, CEO Paul Gu purchased 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.55 per share, with a total value of $1,277,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 130,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,321,500. This trade represents a 62.50% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Andrea Blankmeyer sold 7,175 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.36, for a total transaction of $210,658.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 155,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,556,906.88. This trade represents a 4.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 148,652 shares of company stock worth $4,133,720 in the last 90 days. 17.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Upstart by 33.2% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 1,790 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 446 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Upstart by 274.4% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,842 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,350 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in Upstart in the second quarter valued at $67,000. Hollencrest Capital Management purchased a new stake in Upstart during the first quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP purchased a new stake in Upstart during the second quarter valued at about $74,000. Institutional investors own 63.01% of the company's stock.

About Upstart

Upstart Holdings, Inc NASDAQ: UPST operates an artificial intelligence-powered lending marketplace. Its platform connects consumers seeking credit with banks and credit unions, using data-driven underwriting models designed to evaluate applicants beyond traditional credit-score-based methods.

The company provides technology for several lending categories, including personal loans, automotive retail and refinance lending, home equity lines of credit, and small-dollar lending. Upstart's platform supports financial institutions with application processing, risk assessment, loan origination, and related automation, while offering consumers a digital borrowing experience.

Founded in 2012, Upstart is headquartered in San Mateo, California, and primarily serves the United States.

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