Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Downgraded by Roth Mkm to Neutral

Roth Mkm downgraded shares of Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report released on Friday, Marketbeat reports. Roth Mkm currently has $10.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on UPWK. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Upwork in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $10.00 target price (down from $22.00) on shares of Upwork in a research report on Friday. Zacks Research cut Upwork from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on Upwork from $25.00 to $15.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Upwork currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.30.

Upwork Stock Performance

Shares of Upwork stock opened at $8.82 on Friday. Upwork has a one year low of $7.44 and a one year high of $22.84. The company has a market cap of $1.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.89 and a beta of 1.07. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $11.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.02.

Upwork announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 18th that permits the company to repurchase $300.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 18% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Dave Bottoms sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.49, for a total value of $80,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 2,678 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,770.22. This trade represents a 72.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Erica Gessert sold 9,278 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.31, for a total value of $114,212.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 307,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,782,124.40. The trade was a 2.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 235,186 shares of company stock valued at $3,156,199. 7.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Upwork

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Upwork by 26.5% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,715,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,720,000 after acquiring an additional 779,506 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new position in Upwork in the first quarter valued at $829,000. Aviance Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Upwork by 50.0% in the first quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 69,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $764,000 after acquiring an additional 23,238 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Upwork by 11.3% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 37,679 shares of the company’s stock worth $421,000 after purchasing an additional 3,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Upwork by 4.1% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 72,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $791,000 after purchasing an additional 2,836 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Key Upwork News

Here are the key news stories impacting Upwork this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Upwork reported Q1 revenue growth of 1.4% year over year and raised its full-year adjusted EBITDA guidance, which suggests the company is still focused on profitability. Upwork Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms still maintain bullish views despite cutting targets, including Needham keeping a Buy rating but lowering its target to $15, reflecting continued long-term confidence but less optimism on near-term growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: Upwork’s Q1 EPS beat some expectations, but revenue was roughly in line with estimates, leaving investors focused more on the outlook than the headline bottom-line result. Upwork earnings report
• Negative Sentiment: Management’s Q2 revenue guidance came in well below Wall Street expectations, raising concerns that growth is slowing more than expected.
• Negative Sentiment: FY 2026 revenue guidance also missed consensus, reinforcing worries that the company’s top-line outlook is weaker than analysts had hoped.
• Negative Sentiment: Citizens JMP and Roth MKM both downgraded the stock, while Needham cut its price target sharply, adding to the pressure on shares.
• Negative Sentiment: Post-earnings reports also highlighted softer profitability metrics and restructuring plans, which may be weighing on sentiment toward UPWK.

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.