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Upwork Inc.

Rank #90Capital ReturnWatchlistCompare with other stocks

UPWK · Nasdaq · Communication Services

Upwork Inc. (UPWK) — Rank #90 by gross profitability (GP/assets 0.48) · ROE 18.9% · Piotroski F-Score 6 / 9.

As-of 2026-10-30 · CIK 0001627475 · all metrics point-in-time as of the filing date.

About

Upwork Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides platforms and workforce solutions that connect businesses with freelance, agency, fractional, and payrolled talent in the United States, the Philippines, India, Pakistan, and internationally.

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The company offers Upwork Marketplace, a human and AI-powered work marketplace that connects businesses with on-demand access to independent talent across a range of categories, including AI-related projects, administrative support, sales and marketing, design and creative, and customer service, as well as web, mobile, and software development. Its marketplace also streamlines workflows, such as talent sourcing, outreach, contracting, and engagement management, as well as provides infrastructure for remote collaboration, including communication and collaboration tools, consolidated invoicing, and payment protection; and Upwork Payroll services. It also offers enterprise solutions that provide access to platform capabilities that support contingent workforce solutions, including sourcing, onboarding, classification, compliance and contract management, payments, and reporting. In addition, the company offers managed services that provide a service-led program management and end-to-end project delivery solution that enables enterprise clients to outsource defined functions or projects; Uma, an AI assistant; and escrow services. The company was formerly known as Elance-oDesk, Inc. and changed its name to Upwork Inc. in May 2015. Upwork Inc.

was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Palo Alto, California.

Industry
Internet Content & Information
Sector
Communication Services
State
DE
Filer Category
Large accelerated filer
Fiscal Year End
December 31
Website
upwork.com

Company Snapshot

P/E and reverse DCF are the primary valuation lenses at this stage.

Market Cap

—

P/E (annual)

—

P/S (annual)

—

P/B

—

P/OCF (annual)

—

Shareholder Yield

—

Employees

630

Industry

Internet Content & Information

Exchange

Nasdaq

12/12

Flags passed

UPWK passes 12/12 quality flags

  • PASS
    Gross margin holding
  • PASS
    Dilution within 2%
  • PASS
    FCF not negative from investment
  • PASS
    Disclosure consistent
  • PASS
    Revenue not declining
  • PASS
    Operating margin holding
  • PASS
    Free cash flow intact
  • PASS
    Passes safety gate
  • PASS
    Balance sheet stable
  • PASS
    No competitive retreat
  • PASS
    SBC not compressing margin
  • PASS
    No valuation convergence

Strengths Operating leverage expanding · Deferred revenue growing · Sequential beat (rev + EPS)

A count of the 12 warning flags that could be evaluated. Unweighted: colour follows the worst flag.

Quality Profile

Profitability

1/1 pass
GP / assets
0.48
Return on equity
18.9%
Gross margin trend
PASS

Safety

1/1 pass
Balance-sheet safety
PASS
Debt / equity
1.08
Current ratio
1.42×
Net cash
$253.55M

Cash Flow

3/3 pass
Positive FCF
PASS
Cash-backed earnings
PASS
Accruals healthy
PASS
SBC / revenue
8.3%

Growth

2/2 pass
Revenue growth
2.4%
Piotroski F-Score
6 / 9
Share dilution
-1.7%

FCF yield, shareholder yield, and buyback activity are the primary reads at this stage.

Profitability

Does it make money well?

No warning flags · GP/assets 0.48

Gross profitability (GP / assets)

0.48

Primary signal (Novy-Marx).

8th of 14 SIC 7374 peers

Return on equity

18.9%

Gross margin

77.8%

5th of 14 SIC 7374 peers

Revenue growth (YoY)

2.4%

Gross margin improving

Margin trend vs prior year.

PASS

Operating Leverage

2022202320242025
Revenue vs COGS
Revenue vs OpEx
Op. Income vs Revenue

Growth

Revenue CAGR (3Y)

8.4%

Revenue CAGR (5Y)

16.1%

Earnings CAGR (3Y)

—

FCF CAGR (3Y)

257.4%

Cash Flow Health

Is the cash real?

No warning flags · FCF 110% above net income

Free cash flow

$242.47M

Operating cash flow minus capex.

Positive free cash flow

PASS

FCF vs net income

110.1%

(FCF − net income) ÷ |net income|. Positive: cash above earnings. Negative: below.

FCF not below net income

Fails when free cash flow is below net income (yellow flag).

PASS

Accruals healthy

Cash-backed earnings.

PASS

SBC / revenue

8.3%

Stock-based comp intensity.

Balance Sheet Strength

Can it survive a storm?

No warning flags · net cash $253.55M, F-Score 6/9

Balance-sheet safety

Composite anti-fragile check.

PASS

Debt / equity

1.08

5th of 12 SIC 7374 peers (best = lowest)

Current ratio

1.42×

8th of 14 SIC 7374 peers

Quick ratio

1.08×

Net cash

$253.55M

Cash & equivalents minus total debt.

Piotroski F-Score

6 / 9

Fundamental-strength score (0-9).

Valuation

Is the price reasonable?

No warning flags

Capital allocation quality

Composite score

3.3 / 5

Good
Share count trend(net buybacks)
-1.7%3/5 Good
Buyback timing
N/AN/A
Dividend growth consistency(non-payer or broken streak)
0 yr3/5 Good
Net debt trajectory(deleveraging)
3.8%4/5 Strong

Lifecycle Phase History

20202025
Hypergrowth
Op. Leverage
Capital Return

Price History

UPWK-82.2% · -29.2% CAGRSPY+82.9% · +12.8% CAGR

View full financial statements →

Source filings on SEC EDGAR: 10-K annual reports · 10-Q quarterly reports