Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Given New $15.00 Price Target at Scotiabank

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) had its target price cut by Scotiabank from $17.00 to $15.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Upwork from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Upwork from $24.00 to $20.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Upwork in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Upwork from $19.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of Upwork in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.00.

Upwork Price Performance

Shares of Upwork stock opened at $15.20 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $20.18 and a 200 day moving average of $17.73. The firm has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.10 and a beta of 1.06. Upwork has a 1 year low of $11.13 and a 1 year high of $22.84.

Insider Transactions at Upwork

In other Upwork news, Director Gary Steele sold 12,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.51, for a total transaction of $218,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 85,129 shares in the company, valued at $1,490,608.79. The trade was a 12.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Dave Bottoms sold 11,285 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 9,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $205,220.53. The trade was a 53.10% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 523,248 shares of company stock valued at $10,029,741 over the last 90 days. 7.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Upwork

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UPWK. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new position in Upwork in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $5,118,000. Ruffer LLP bought a new stake in shares of Upwork during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,716,000. Aviance Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Upwork during the second quarter valued at approximately $619,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Upwork by 80.6% in the second quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 251,263 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,377,000 after buying an additional 112,133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Upwork by 27.1% during the second quarter. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC now owns 463,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,235,000 after acquiring an additional 98,811 shares during the last quarter. 77.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Upwork News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Upwork this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record full‑year revenue and strong profitability — Upwork reported record 2025 revenue of $787.8M, robust adjusted EBITDA (29% margin) and GAAP net income, underscoring solid cash generation and operating leverage that support valuation upside. GlobeNewswire — Q4 & FY Results
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 revenue roughly in line and some beat on metrics — several outlets note Q4 revenue (~$198.4M) was close to consensus and some metrics/earnings beats were reported, supporting the view that the core business remains profitable. MarketBeat — Q4 Snapshot
• Positive Sentiment: AI-driven marketplace growth — Upwork highlighted AI-related gross services volume (GSV) growth (management noted strong AI adoption), positioning the platform to capture new workload even as AI reshapes demand. Analysts and bulls cite this as a long‑term tailwind. Yahoo — Q4 Deep Dive
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reactions mixed but many remain constructive — several firms reaffirm or maintain buy ratings with mid‑$20s targets (Needham, UBS still “buy” despite trimming targets), while some desks trimmed near‑term targets. This leaves a wide range of views for investors to weigh. Benzinga — Analyst Revisions
• Negative Sentiment: Disappointing near‑term guidance drove the selloff — management gave Q1 2026 revenue and EPS guidance below consensus (Q1 revenue ~$192–197M vs. ~$201M est.; Q1 EPS guidance below consensus), which triggered a steep after‑hours decline as investors reprice near‑term growth. Yahoo — Why UPWK Is Down
• Negative Sentiment: After‑hours plunge and heavy selling — multiple outlets reported a ~20–23% after‑hours drop and elevated volume as traders reacted to guidance and mixed quarter details. That momentum amplified intraday weakness. MSN — After‑hours Plunge
• Negative Sentiment: Signs of demand softness — active clients fell (~6% reported by some transcripts/analyst notes) and some outlets flagged EPS/revenue misses on certain metrics, increasing concern that AI may be displacing some freelancer demand in the near term. Seeking Alpha — Rating Upgrade/Notes
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst trims and insider selling add pressure — a few firms cut price targets (UBS trimmed to $23; Scotiabank cut to $15) and public insider sales were highlighted in coverage, which can weigh on sentiment. Benzinga — Price Target Notes

About Upwork

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.