Picton Mahoney Asset Management Makes New Investment in Upwork Inc. $UPWK

Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new position in Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 88,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,648,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Accredited Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Upwork by 5,280.0% in the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Upwork by 998.4% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 1,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,278 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Upwork during the second quarter worth $30,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Upwork by 2,405.7% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,684 shares during the period. Finally, EMC Capital Management bought a new position in Upwork in the second quarter valued at about $45,000. 77.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Upwork

In other Upwork news, insider Dave Bottoms sold 17,013 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total value of $234,779.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 15,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $220,717.20. This represents a 51.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Erica Gessert sold 26,292 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.80, for a total transaction of $362,829.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 298,386 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,117,726.80. This trade represents a 8.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 235,204 shares of company stock worth $3,602,486. 7.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on UPWK shares. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on Upwork from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Upwork from $22.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $22.00 price target on shares of Upwork in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Upwork from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $22.60.

Upwork Trading Down 0.9%

Upwork stock opened at $13.31 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.85 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a 50-day moving average of $17.64 and a 200-day moving average of $17.72. Upwork Inc. has a 1 year low of $11.13 and a 1 year high of $22.84.

Upwork declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 18th that allows the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 18% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.