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Upwork’s Share Price Slumps, But Online Staffing Platform Soldiers On (Part 1)

05/16/2019 By

Being a public company is not always easy, with performance vs. market expectations being put under the microscope every quarter. And Upwork (NASDAQ: UPWK), the global online freelancer marketplace and managed services provider, found that out Wednesday, May 9, after it announced its Q1 2019 financial results, which seemed to pack few, if any, surprises.

At the same time, while the shares fell swiftly from just over $20 to under $17 in after-hours trading, it bears remembering that, just months ago at the start of October 2018, Upwork offered its IPO shares at $15. Though this may not be a consolation to investors who acquired shares when the stock was trading between $20 and $25 in February and March, it may be somewhat reassuring for more conservative investors that expect a company’s share price to be linked to its fundamentals, including uncertainty.

In Part 1 of this two-part Spend Matters PRO series, we attempt to understand what was revealed shortly after 4 p.m. Eastern time May 9, that caused such disappointment among investors. In Part 2, we will look at Upwork’s several updates to new growth initiatives in the business (e.g., the creation of four service/pricing tiers for buy-side businesses), and we will offer our own perspective on Upwork’s current position as a high profile player in the changing contingent workforce space.

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