Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) Announces FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Tuesday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 1.450-1.470 for the period, compared to the consensus EPS estimate of 1.400. The company issued revenue guidance of $742.0 million-$750.0 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $742.1 million. Upwork also updated its Q4 2026 guidance to 0.300-0.320 EPS.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UPWK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Upwork in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $11.50 price target on Upwork in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. BTIG Research reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Upwork in a research report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on Upwork from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on Upwork from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.25.

Upwork Stock Up 6.2%

Shares of UPWK stock opened at $9.72 on Tuesday. Upwork has a 52-week low of $7.44 and a 52-week high of $22.84. The stock has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of 12.62 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $8.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.65.

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.09. Upwork had a return on equity of 16.70% and a net margin of 12.94%. The company had revenue of $185.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $180.22 million.

Insider Transactions at Upwork

In other news, COO Anthony Kappus sold 45,732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.45, for a total transaction of $386,435.40. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 76,342 shares in the company, valued at $645,089.90. This trade represents a 37.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Erica Gessert sold 9,336 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.45, for a total value of $78,889.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 373,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,156,801.70. This trade represents a 2.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 178,868 shares of company stock valued at $1,509,462 in the last ninety days. 4.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about Upwork

Here are the key news stories impacting Upwork this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Upwork reported third-quarter EPS of $0.40, exceeding the $0.31 analyst consensus, while revenue of $185.6 million topped expectations of $180.2 million. Upwork third-quarter earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Full-year 2026 EPS guidance was raised or maintained at $1.45-$1.47, above the $1.40 consensus estimate. Full-year revenue guidance of $742 million-$750 million is broadly in line with expectations, supporting confidence in profitability. Upwork third-quarter financial results
• Positive Sentiment: Upwork launched the public beta of Upwork Now, designed to let clients hire experts within minutes. The company is also embedding its freelance marketplace into leading AI tools, potentially improving customer acquisition and demand for freelancers. Upwork Now launch
• Positive Sentiment: Lifted, Upwork’s enterprise-focused business, acquired WorkMotion, expanding its global employer-of-record capabilities. Business Plus revenue also reportedly grew 120% year over year in the third quarter, highlighting strength in higher-value offerings. Upwork acquires WorkMotion
• Negative Sentiment: Fourth-quarter EPS guidance of $0.30-$0.32 is below the $0.35 consensus estimate. Revenue guidance of $169 million-$177 million is centered near expectations but indicates a sequential decline from the third quarter. Upwork Q3 earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Some analysts remain concerned that declining revenue trends and structural changes from generative AI could undermine Upwork’s long-term relevance, despite the recent earnings rebound. Upwork long-term outlook analysis

Upwork Company Profile

Upwork Inc operates a global work marketplace that connects businesses with independent professionals and agencies. Clients use the platform to find, evaluate, hire and manage talent for projects across areas such as software development, design, marketing, writing, consulting, customer support and administrative services.

The company provides tools for talent discovery, project collaboration, communications, time tracking, contract management and payments. Its offerings serve both individual clients and larger organizations, with features designed to support recurring engagements, contingent-work programs and enterprise talent management.

Upwork was formed in 2015 through the merger of Elance and oDesk, two online freelance-work platforms, and began trading publicly on the Nasdaq stock exchange in 2018.