Laser Focus World is an industry bedrock—first published in 1965 and still going strong. We publish original articles about cutting-edge advances in lasers, optics, photonics, sensors, and quantum technologies, as well as test and measurement, and the shift currently underway to usher in the photonic integrated circuits, optical interconnects, and copackaged electronics and photonics to deliver the speed and efficiency essential for data centers of the future.

Our 80,000 qualified print subscribers—and 130,000 12-month engaged online audience—trust us to dive in and provide original journalism you won’t find elsewhere covering key emerging areas such as laser-driven inertial confinement fusion, lasers in space, integrated photonics, chipscale lasers, LiDAR, metasurfaces, high-energy laser weaponry, photonic crystals, and quantum computing/sensors/communications. We cover the innovations driving these markets.

Laser Focus World is part of Endeavor Business Media, a division of EndeavorB2B.

Laser Focus World Membership

Never miss any articles, videos, podcasts, or webinars by signing up for membership access to Laser Focus World online. You can manage your preferences all in one place—and provide our editorial team with your valued feedback.

Magazine Subscription

Can you subscribe to receive our print issue for free? Yes, you sure can!

Newsletter Subscription

Laser Focus World newsletter subscription is free to qualified professionals:

The Daily Beam

Showcases the newest content from Laser Focus World, including photonics- and optics-based applications, components, research, and trends. (Daily)

Product Watch

The latest in products within the photonics industry. (9x per year)

Bio & Life Sciences Product Watch

The latest in products within the biophotonics industry. (4x per year)

Laser Processing Product Watch

The latest in products within the laser processing industry. (3x per year)

Get Published!

If you’d like to write an article for us, reach out with a short pitch to Sally Cole Johnson: [email protected]. We love to hear from you.

Photonics Hot List

Laser Focus World produces a video newscast that gives a peek into what’s happening in the world of photonics.

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast dives deep into the fascinating world of photonics. Our weekly episodes feature interviews and discussions with industry and research experts, providing valuable perspectives on the issues, technologies, and trends shaping the photonics community.

Editorial Advisory Board

  • Professor Andrea M. Armani, University of Southern California
  • Ruti Ben-Shlomi, Ph.D., LightSolver
  • James Butler, Ph.D., Hamamatsu
  • Natalie Fardian-Melamed, Ph.D., Columbia University
  • Justin Sigley, Ph.D., AmeriCOM
  • Professor Birgit Stiller, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, and Leibniz University of Hannover
  • Professor Stephen Sweeney, University of Glasgow
  • Mohan Wang, Ph.D., University of Oxford
  • Professor Xuchen Wang, Harbin Engineering University
  • Professor Stefan Witte, Delft University of Technology

Upwork Shares Stumble into Bargain Territory

Upwork Shares Stumble into Bargain Territory The world’s largest freelance marketplace platform Upwork. Inc. (NASDAQ: UPWK) shares can’t seem to catch a break as they trade down (-52.6%) on the year. Despite strong industry tailwinds projecting nearly 500 million worldwide freelancers by 2030, the sentiment on the stock continues to be negative. The pandemic-triggered lockdowns were a boon to the Company as remote work became a mainstream phenomenon that has been sticky even through the reopening. Inflation and macroeconomic uncertainty is having an impact on growth in Europe. Enterprise Clients are the growth driver. The Company added 36 new enterprise clients including ServiceNow (NYSE: NOW), Asurion, Newsweek, Fanatics, and Pearson.  Enterprise revenue is growing at a 45% clip with $1 million clients growing significantly. The pandemic has spawned a new normal for the workplace, which is now elastic and commonly includes remote work. The apathetic reaction in the stock price might be more of an industry sentiment struggle as competitor Fiverr International (NYSE: FVRR) shares are down (-70%) on the year. However, this could be a buying opportunity for investors who believe in the continued adoption and growth of freelancers and remote work moving forward as the tailwind gains more momentum.

Upwork Recently Added Features

The Company added new features like Consultations to help with the onboarding of new clients by enabling paid booking sessions for expert advice from talent before engaging larger projects. Client using this new feature are averaging 1.5 days for a time-to-hire, which is half the time compared to using the Talent Marketplace. Nearly 50% of Consultation clients return for another job within 30 days, also a 50% higher rate than the Talent Marketplace. The Company will extend Consolations across all 90-plus categories in the following quarter. Virtual Talent Bench (VTB) enables clients to share their roster of talent with both registered and unregistered users. Pricing changes were made to enable Clients to access premium talent, talent searches and reporting tools from the start with visibility into Top Rate, Rising Talent, and Top Rated Plus talent pools.

Upwork Improving Fundamentals

On July 27, 2022, Upwork released Q2 2022 results for the quarter ending June 2022. The Company reported a non-GAPP loss of (-$0.04) per share versus consensus analyst estimates for a loss of (-$0.08) per share, a $0.04 beat. Revenues rose 26.3% year-over-year (YoY) to $156.9 million beating consensus analyst estimates for $147.78 million.

Upwork Mixed Guidance

Upwork issued mixed guidance for Q3 2022 for EPS to come in between (-$0.15) to (-$0.17) versus (-$0.16) consensus analyst estimates on revenues between $156 million to $158 million versus $150.84 million.

Upwork Attractive Price Levels

Using the rifle charts on weekly and daily time frames provides a precision view of the price action for UPWK stock. The weekly rifle chart broke down again on the breakdown of the $19.69 Fibonacci (fib) level. The weekly downtrend has a falling 5-period moving average (MA) resistance at $17.31 followed by the 15-period MA at the $19.69 fib level. The weekly lower Bollinger Bands (BBs) sit at $14.04. The weekly stochastic has made a full oscillation collapsing through the oversold 20-band. The daily rifle chart broke down as well on an inverse pup breakdown as the 5-period MA resistance slopes back down at $17.05 followed closely behind by the 15-period MA resistance at $17.19. The daily stochastic triggered the inverse pup breakdown on the crossover down off the 50-band. The daily lower BBs are falling at $15.80. Attractive pullback levels sit at the $15.45 fib, $14.20 fib, $13.19 fib, $12.30 fib, and the $11.58 level.

Upwork Shares Stumble into Bargain Territory

The Appeal and Problem with Using Upwork

Upwork clients have actually moved their non-Upwork contractors to the platform to take advantage of the global payroll and work protection products which ensure compliance in 160 countries. The Upwork platform accommodates the needs for unified billing with enhanced visibility, reporting, and worker classification peace of mind. Upwork takes a lofty 20% fee for jobs to new talent. That fee eventually drops after certain income milestones are achieved. For the client, the hiring process for talent on a per project or hourly basis is simple. The client pays Upwork upfront which gets stored in an escrow account until the job is completed and then Upwork pays the talent. Upwork handles the currency adjustments and ensures payout to the talent if they meet the expectations. For international business, either for the client or the talent, this can be a very valuable resource that justifies the lofty 20% commission. However, it may be a turn off for workers who believe the commissions are just too high and seek to negotiate an off-platform agreement. This is ultimately the catch-22 that Upwork or any freelancer platform has yet to solve. Take less fees to ensure talent retention or raise prices but risk losing clients.

Stock Quote API & Stock News API supplied by www.cloudquote.io
Quotes delayed at least 20 minutes.
By accessing this page, you agree to the following
Privacy Policy and Terms Of Service.