KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Buys Shares of 25,600 Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 25,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $419,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Nkcfo LLC acquired a new stake in Upwork in the 4th quarter worth approximately $82,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Upwork in the fourth quarter worth $84,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Upwork during the 4th quarter worth $97,000. Quarry LP grew its stake in Upwork by 42.6% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 6,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 1,851 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its stake in Upwork by 39.6% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,000 after buying an additional 1,899 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Upwork Trading Down 5.3 %

Shares of Upwork stock opened at $11.87 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $14.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a PE ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 1.60. Upwork Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.43 and a 52-week high of $18.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 3.39 and a quick ratio of 3.39.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.79. Upwork had a net margin of 28.02% and a return on equity of 50.83%. On average, analysts expect that Upwork Inc. will post 0.84 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Upwork

In other news, CFO Erica Gessert sold 4,316 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.07, for a total transaction of $56,410.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 160,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,103,551.15. This trade represents a 2.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Dave Bottoms sold 5,411 shares of Upwork stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.07, for a total transaction of $70,721.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 9,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $125,380.51. This trade represents a 36.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 193,365 shares of company stock valued at $3,050,760 in the last 90 days. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UPWK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Upwork from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group increased their target price on Upwork from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Roth Mkm dropped their price target on Upwork from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Upwork from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Upwork in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $18.58.

Upwork Company Profile

Upwork Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates a work marketplace that connects businesses with various independent professionals and agencies in the United States, India, the Philippines, and internationally. The company’s work marketplace provides access to talent with various skills across a range of categories, including administrative support, sales and marketing, design and creative, and customer service, as well as web, mobile, and software development.