Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) Shares Gap Down - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Upstart Holdings, Inc. shares gapped down from $73.28 to $69.09 at market open, with the last trade at $72.02.
• Analysts have set a consensus price target of $78.54, with Barclays raising their target for Upstart to $47.00 and Piper Sandler increasing it to $90.00.
• CEO Dave Girouard sold 41,667 shares at an average price of $63.27, reducing his ownership by 44.19%.

Upstart Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $73.28, but opened at $69.09. Upstart shares last traded at $72.02, with a volume of 1,714,277 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on UPST shares. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Upstart from $42.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $82.00 target price (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Upstart in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Stephens started coverage on shares of Upstart in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Upstart from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Upstart from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $93.00 to $88.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $78.54.

Upstart Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $72.91 and a 200 day moving average of $58.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -836.25 and a beta of 2.37.

Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.09. Upstart had a negative return on equity of 5.95% and a negative net margin of 0.75%.The business had revenue of $257.29 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $225.35 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.17) EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 101.6% on a year-over-year basis. Upstart has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Upstart Holdings, Inc. will post -0.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Natalia Mirgorodskaya sold 6,533 shares of Upstart stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.06, for a total value of $457,701.98. Following the sale, the insider owned 24,623 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,725,087.38. The trade was a 20.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dave Girouard sold 41,667 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.05, for a total value of $2,502,103.35. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 52,614 shares in the company, valued at $3,159,470.70. The trade was a 44.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 200,081 shares of company stock valued at $13,010,750. Corporate insiders own 16.67% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upstart

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in Upstart by 190.2% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 1,709,300 shares of the company's stock valued at $105,242,000 after buying an additional 1,120,300 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Upstart during the 2nd quarter worth $67,777,000. Mane Global Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Upstart in the 2nd quarter valued at $43,576,000. Man Group plc purchased a new stake in shares of Upstart in the fourth quarter worth about $36,464,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Upstart by 79.0% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,270,352 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,474,000 after buying an additional 560,668 shares in the last quarter. 63.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Upstart Company Profile

Upstart Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates a cloud-based artificial intelligence (AI) lending platform in the United States. Its platform includes personal loans, automotive retail and refinance loans, home equity lines of credit, and small dollar loans that connects consumer demand for loans to its to bank and credit unions.