Ruffer LLP Invests $2.72 Million in Upwork Inc. $UPWK

Ruffer LLP purchased a new stake in Upwork Inc. (NASDAQ:UPWK) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 146,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,716,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Upwork during the 2nd quarter valued at about $5,118,000. Aviance Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Upwork in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $619,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC boosted its position in Upwork by 80.6% during the second quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 251,263 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,377,000 after purchasing an additional 112,133 shares during the period. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Upwork by 27.1% during the second quarter. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC now owns 463,926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,235,000 after purchasing an additional 98,811 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of Upwork by 61.6% in the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 262,219 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,524,000 after buying an additional 99,941 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.71% of the company’s stock.

Upwork Stock Down 3.7%

UPWK stock opened at $20.51 on Thursday. Upwork Inc. has a twelve month low of $11.13 and a twelve month high of $22.84. The company has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.72 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a fifty day moving average of $20.29 and a 200-day moving average of $17.37.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.04). Upwork had a return on equity of 41.05% and a net margin of 31.63%.The firm had revenue of $201.73 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $193.33 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.30 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Upwork has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.350-1.370 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 0.310-0.330 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Upwork Inc. will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UPWK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Upwork from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Upwork from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Upwork in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Upwork presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $23.91.

Insider Buying and Selling at Upwork

In other Upwork news, Director Gary Steele sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.51, for a total value of $218,875.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 85,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,490,608.79. This trade represents a 12.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Dave Bottoms sold 11,285 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.59, for a total transaction of $232,358.15. Following the sale, the insider owned 9,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $205,220.53. The trade was a 53.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 523,248 shares of company stock valued at $10,029,741. 7.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.