Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) Trading Down 8.2% After Insider Selling

Upstart Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPST) was down 8.2% on Thursday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $29.84 and last traded at $29.94. Approximately 1,597,924 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 8,540,318 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.61.

Specifically, insider Scott Darling sold 1,670 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.92, for a total value of $49,966.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 184,588 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,522,872.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Natalia Mirgorodskaya sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $120,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 39,470 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,368,200. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Scott Darling sold 1,670 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.92, for a total value of $49,966.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 184,588 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,522,872.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 79,263 shares of company stock worth $2,640,641 in the last three months. 18.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on UPST. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Upstart from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 14th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Upstart from $17.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 14th. 22nd Century Group reaffirmed an “initiates” rating on shares of Upstart in a research report on Wednesday, June 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Upstart from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Upstart from $17.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.00.

Upstart Price Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $43.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.67 billion, a PE ratio of -9.72 and a beta of 1.99.

Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 8th. The company reported ($0.34) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.49) by $0.15. The company had revenue of $135.77 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $133.91 million. Upstart had a negative net margin of 49.54% and a negative return on equity of 38.15%. On average, equities analysts expect that Upstart Holdings, Inc. will post -2.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Upstart

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Upstart during the first quarter valued at approximately $45,000. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of Upstart by 4,153.3% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 638 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 623 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Upstart by 78.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 705 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Upstart in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new position in shares of Upstart in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. 42.50% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Upstart Company Profile

Upstart Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates a cloud-based artificial intelligence (AI) lending platform in the United States. Its platform aggregates consumer demand for loans and connects it to its network of the company's AI-enabled bank and credit union partners. The company was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in San Mateo, California.