What happened
Shares of Upwork (UPWK 0.09%) are seeing strong rebound momentum in this week's trading. The company's share price was up roughly 18.1% from the previous Friday's close as of 11:30 a.m. ET today, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Upwork published a press release last week announcing that it had suspended operations in Russia and Belarus. With comments from Russian and Ukrainian officials suggesting that progress was being made on negotiations that could bring their conflict to a close, the gig-economy marketplace stock regained some ground this week.
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So what
In addition to announcing the cessation of operations in Russia and Belarus last week, Upwork also withdrew its full-year guidance. The news prompted a steep pullback for the stock, but it's now seeing some recovery.
Upwork said last week that approximately 10% of its 2021 sales came from work where either the seller or buyer of services was in a region currently connected to the war in Ukraine. As per its press release, labor contracts with at least one party residing in Ukraine accounted for roughly 6% of last year's revenue, while Russia and Belarus accounted for a combined 4% of sales. The company said that it had seen a meaningful decrease in activity in the affected regions.
With indications that an end to Russia's invasion of Ukraine could be in sight, investors began pouring back into Upwork stock this week. The Federal Reserve's announcement that it would be raising interest rates by a quarter-point also brought some relief for investors who feared a half-point rise was in the cards, and the Fed's decision appears to have created some positive momentum for growth-dependent stocks.
Now what
While signs that there could be a near-term resolution to the war in Ukraine are encouraging, investors should keep in mind there's still plenty of uncertainty on how things will play out.
Upwork stock now has a market capitalization of roughly $2.9 billion and is valued at approximately 4.7 times this year's expected sales. As a leading player in the gig-economy space, the company still has a promising long-term expansion outlook, but the stock could keep seeing volatile trading if investors continue to become more risk-averse and move out of growth-dependent stocks.
