Insider Buying: Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) Director Buys 170,240 Shares of Stock

May 9, 2026 by InsiderTrades.com

Key Points

Upstart director Dave Girouard bought 170,240 shares for about $5.0 million at an average price of $29.37, increasing his stake by 2.04% to more than 8.5 million shares. The purchase may signal insider confidence in the company’s outlook.
Upstart’s latest quarter showed revenue growth of 44.3% to $308.21 million, but earnings missed expectations with EPS of -$0.07 versus the consensus estimate of $0.39. That mix has kept investor sentiment cautious despite strong top-line growth.
Analysts remain split on the stock, with several firms maintaining or changing ratings and price targets while the overall consensus stays at Hold. Meanwhile, Upstart is also facing added uncertainty from a securities class action effort and recent reports of continued profitability concerns.

Upstart Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report) Director Dave Girouard acquired 170,240 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $29.37 per share, with a total value of $4,999,948.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 8,512,941 shares in the company, valued at approximately $250,025,077.17. The trade was a 2.04% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Upstart Trading Down 0.1%

MarketBeat Week in Review – 03/30 - 04/03

Shares of NASDAQ:UPST opened at $28.96 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $28.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.04. The company has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.21, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 2.26. Upstart Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.97 and a 12-month high of $87.30.

Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported ($0.07) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.46). The business had revenue of $308.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $301.30 million. Upstart had a return on equity of 5.63% and a net margin of 4.34%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 44.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.30 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Upstart Holdings, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Upstart Surges on Record Revenue but Wall Street Remains Divided

Upstart declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 19th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 3.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Upstart News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Upstart this week:

Positive Sentiment: Director Dave Girouard bought 170,240 shares for about $5.0 million, a notable insider purchase that can signal confidence in Upstart’s outlook. SEC Form 4 filing
Neutral Sentiment: Upstart’s latest quarterly report showed revenue growth above expectations but a loss per share that missed estimates, which has kept investors cautious after the post-earnings reaction. Benzinga article
Neutral Sentiment: BTIG reiterated a Buy rating, but B. Riley and Needham both cut their price targets, signaling mixed analyst views rather than a clear catalyst. BTIG rating article B. Riley target cut article Needham target cut article
Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms are promoting a securities class action tied to the May 14, 2025 to November 4, 2025 period, adding legal uncertainty and potential settlement costs for Upstart. Schall Law Firm article Gross Law Firm article Rosen Law Firm article
Negative Sentiment: Recent reports say Upstart is down after a wider Q1 loss, which reinforces concerns that profitability remains inconsistent despite revenue and originations growth. Yahoo Finance article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Why Upstart’s Bank Charter Bet Could Change Everything

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and set a $43.00 target price on shares of Upstart in a report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Upstart from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $44.00 to $35.00 in a report on Friday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on Upstart from $40.00 to $37.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Compass Point upgraded Upstart from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the company from $20.00 to $30.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Mizuho set a $45.00 target price on Upstart in a report on Friday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $45.87.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Upstart

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Upstart

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UPST. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Upstart by 154.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,206,615 shares of the company's stock valued at $183,955,000 after purchasing an additional 2,554,591 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Upstart in the 4th quarter valued at about $49,915,000. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. raised its position in Upstart by 253.3% in the 1st quarter. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. now owns 1,467,360 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,638,000 after purchasing an additional 1,052,039 shares in the last quarter. Azora Capital LP acquired a new stake in Upstart in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,580,000. Finally, Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Upstart by 22.6% in the 3rd quarter. Jericho Capital Asset Management L.P. now owns 4,480,809 shares of the company's stock valued at $227,625,000 after purchasing an additional 826,974 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.01% of the company's stock.

Upstart Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Upstart Holdings, Inc operates a cloud-based lending marketplace that leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to assess borrower creditworthiness. The company partners with banks and credit unions, providing its proprietary AI models and underwriting platform to facilitate consumer credit products. By focusing on non‐traditional data points—such as education, employment history and other real‐time indicators—Upstart seeks to improve approval rates and lower loss rates compared with conventional credit scoring methods.

Upstart's core offering centers on unsecured personal loans, which borrowers can use for purposes such as debt consolidation, home improvements or major purchases.