Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) Shares Down 8.1% Following Insider Selling

Key Points

• Upstart shares fell 8.1% to about $28.12 following insider selling, with trading volume roughly 60% below its average.
• CFO Andrea Blankmeyer and insider Sanjay Datta sold shares under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans or to cover tax withholding, while retaining substantial ownership positions.
• Analysts have a consensus “Hold” rating and a $44.40 price target. Upstart’s revenue rose 41.9% year over year to $364.7 million, but quarterly EPS of $0.16 missed expectations and execution and valuation risks remain.

Upstart Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 8.1% during mid-day trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $28.03 and last traded at $28.1210. 1,880,740 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 4,758,962 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.60.

Specifically, CFO Andrea Blankmeyer sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.33, for a total transaction of $87,990.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 152,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,464,260.64. This trade represents a 1.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 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. Also, CFO Andrea Blankmeyer sold 7,175 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.36, for a total value of $210,658.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 155,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,556,906.88. This represents a 4.42% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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. In other Upstart news, insider Sanjay Datta sold 2,033 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.36, for a total transaction of $59,688.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 311,523 shares in the company, valued at $9,146,315.28. This represents a 0.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UPST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Upstart from $80.00 to $61.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Needham & Company LLC lifted their price target on Upstart from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and issued a $43.00 price objective on shares of Upstart in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Upstart from a "sell (d)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, B. Riley Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Upstart from $66.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $44.40.

Upstart News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Upstart this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Planned Upstart Bank adds a potential growth catalyst. CEO Paul Gu said Upstart expects to launch Upstart Bank early next year. Management believes the bank could improve access to funding, support expansion into secured products such as home and auto loans, and give Upstart greater control over its lending platform. Upstart plans to launch Upstart Bank
• Positive Sentiment: Fintech stocks rebounded broadly. Upstart advanced alongside SoFi Technologies and Affirm Holdings as investors rotated into higher-beta fintech names amid a bond-market catalyst. With a beta of 2.29, UPST can be particularly sensitive to shifts in market sentiment and interest-rate expectations. Fintech names rebound with bond-market catalyst
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent insider selling appears administrative. CFO Andrea Blankmeyer sold 10,175 shares in transactions totaling roughly $299,000, while insider Sanjay Datta sold 2,033 shares for about $59,700. The sales were made under a Rule 10b5-1 plan or to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards, and both executives retained sizable positions.
• Negative Sentiment: Execution and valuation risks remain. Upstart’s latest quarterly revenue rose 41.9% year over year to $364.7 million, but EPS of $0.16 missed the $0.18 consensus estimate. Analysts also view rival SoFi as having stronger profitability and deposit funding. Upstart’s consensus rating is “Hold,” which may temper enthusiasm until its bank strategy produces sustainable profits. SoFi versus Upstart analysis

Upstart Stock Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $30.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 2.29.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upstart

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Upstart by 102.2% in the fourth quarter. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. now owns 415,321 shares of the company's stock worth $18,162,000 after buying an additional 209,915 shares during the period. Azora Capital LP bought a new position in Upstart in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,580,000. Maxi Investments CY Ltd purchased a new position in Upstart during the 4th quarter worth $8,457,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Upstart during the 4th quarter worth $49,915,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Upstart by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 373,455 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,579,000 after purchasing an additional 54,908 shares in the last quarter. 63.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Upstart

Upstart Holdings, Inc operates a cloud-based lending marketplace that leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to assess borrower creditworthiness. The company partners with banks and credit unions, providing its proprietary AI models and underwriting platform to facilitate consumer credit products. By focusing on non‐traditional data points—such as education, employment history and other real‐time indicators—Upstart seeks to improve approval rates and lower loss rates compared with conventional credit scoring methods.

Upstart's core offering centers on unsecured personal loans, which borrowers can use for purposes such as debt consolidation, home improvements or major purchases.

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