Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) Upgraded by BTIG Research to "Buy" Rating

Key Points

• BTIG Research upgraded Upstart from "neutral" to a "buy" with a $43 price target, implying roughly a 63% upside from the stock's current level.
• Analyst coverage is mixed—five Buys, six Holds and four Sells—with a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $47.77.
• Upstart topped quarterly estimates (EPS $0.17 vs. $0.15; revenue $296.1M vs. $288.5M, +35% YoY), authorized a $100 million share buyback, and saw insider selling (CFO sold ~7,982 shares) while institutions own about 63% of the stock.

Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at BTIG Research from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $43.00 price objective on the stock. BTIG Research's target price indicates a potential upside of 63.13% from the company's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Upstart in a report on Monday, December 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Upstart from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $44.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Compass Point raised Upstart from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $20.00 to $30.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market underperform" rating and issued a $20.00 price objective on shares of Upstart in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Upstart from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $47.77.

Upstart Price Performance

UPST opened at $26.36 on Monday. Upstart has a 1 year low of $25.60 and a 1 year high of $87.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a PE ratio of 62.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 2.44. The business's 50-day moving average is $37.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.10.

Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $296.09 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $288.54 million. Upstart had a net margin of 5.13% and a return on equity of 6.30%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 35.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.26 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Upstart will post -0.03 EPS for the current year.

Upstart announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, February 19th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 3.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Upstart news, CFO Sanjay Datta sold 7,982 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.86, for a total transaction of $238,342.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 276,688 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,261,903.68. This trade represents a 2.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,481 shares of company stock valued at $282,201. 16.67% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Upstart

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Clearstead Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Upstart during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Upstart in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Quarry LP grew its holdings in Upstart by 749.2% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 501 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 442 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in Upstart by 132.2% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 771 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Upstart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 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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