What Happened?
Shares of online work marketplace Upwork (NASDAQ: UPWK) fell 4.8% in the afternoon session after a report showed the U.S. labor market is cooling, with fewer jobs added in August than anticipated. The U.S. economy added a lower-than-expected 22,000 jobs, suggesting a potential slowdown in hiring. For a company like Upwork, which runs a marketplace connecting businesses with freelancers, a weaker labor market can be a significant headwind.
Slower job growth may indicate that companies are reducing their hiring activities, potentially leading to decreased demand for the freelance services offered on Upwork's platform. This has raised investor concerns about the company's future revenue and growth in a cooling economic environment.
The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks. Is now the time to buy Upwork? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
What Is The Market Telling Us
Upwork’s shares are quite volatile and have had 19 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 15 days ago when the stock gained 3.4% on the news that the company announced the launch of Lifted, a new subsidiary targeting the enterprise workforce. The new wholly owned subsidiary, named Lifted, is designed to combine talent sourcing, contracting, and workforce management for all types of contingent, or temporary, work. This strategic launch represents a significant push into the enterprise staffing sector, a potentially lucrative market for the talent platform. The move builds on Upwork's recent acquisitions of Bubty, a freelance management system, and Ascen, an employer-of-record provider, signaling a clear strategy to offer more comprehensive workforce solutions to large businesses.
Upwork is down 2.5% since the beginning of the year, but at $16.00 per share, it is still trading close to its 52-week high of $17.50 from May 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Upwork’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,111.
Do you want to know what moves the business you care about? Add them to your StockStory watchlist and every time a stock significantly moves, we provide you with a timely explanation straight to your inbox. It’s free and will only take you a second.
