Skip to main content

Hidden Lake Loads Up 316,000 Upstart Shares Worth $13.8 Million

Motley Fool - Wed Feb 18, 3:25PM CST

Key Points

  • Initiated new stake of 316,586 shares in Upstart Holdings, with estimated transaction value of $13.84 million (based on quarterly average pricing).

  • Quarter-end position value increased by $13.84 million due to the new share purchase.

  • Post-trade position stands at 316,586 shares, valued at $13.84 million, or 3.5% of AUM.

  • Upstart is now Hidden Lake's fifth-largest holding.

On February 17, 2026, Hidden Lake Asset Management LP disclosed a new position in Upstart Holdings(NASDAQ:UPST).

What happened

According to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing dated February 17, 2026, Hidden Lake Asset Management LP initiated a new position in Upstart Holdings, purchasing 316,586 shares. The estimated transaction value was approximately $13.84 million, based on the average closing price during the quarter. The stake’s quarter-end value also measured $13.84 million, reflecting the new share purchase.

What else to know

  • This is a new position for the fund, with Upstart Holdings representing 3.5% of total 13F assets under management after the trade.
  • Top five holdings after the filing:
    • NYSEMKT: SPY: $204.58 million (52% of AUM)
    • NASDAQ: AMZN: $25.85 million (6.5% of AUM)
    • NYSE: SE: $17.59 million (4.4% of AUM)
    • NASDAQ: NVDA $16.09 million (4.1% of AUM)
    • NASDAQ: UPST: $13.84 million (3.5% of AUM)
  • As of February 17, 2026, shares were priced at $31.97, down 61.2% over the past year, with alpha versus the S&P 500 at (71.13) percentage points.

Company overview

MetricValue
Revenue (TTM)$1.04 billion
Net income (TTM)$53.60 million
Market capitalization$3.14 billion
Price (as of market close February 17, 2026)$31.97

Company snapshot

  • Upstart Holdings operates a cloud-based artificial intelligence (AI) lending platform, primarily facilitating personal loans and credit services for consumers.
  • The company generates revenue by aggregating loan demand and connecting it to a network of bank partners, leveraging AI to assess credit risk and streamline loan origination.
  • Primary customers include individual borrowers seeking unsecured loans and financial institutions aiming to enhance their lending capabilities through advanced AI-driven underwriting.

Upstart Holdings is a financial technology company specializing in AI-powered lending solutions for the consumer credit market. The company leverages proprietary machine learning models to connect borrowers with bank partners, aiming to improve access to affordable credit while reducing risk for lenders. Its scalable cloud-based platform and focus on data-driven underwriting provide a competitive advantage in the evolving financial services landscape.

What this transaction means for investors

The purchase of Upstart stock is notable. Although it holds 33 positions (with more than half of its assets in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF), Upstart instantly became Hidden Lake’s fifth-largest position with the aforementioned purchase.

Funds may sell a stock for numerous reasons, but the fact that the fund made this relatively large purchase of Upstart is indicative of the confidence it seems to have in this company.

When looking at the market, one can understand Hidden Lake’s apparent optimism. Upstart operates an AI-driven loan evaluation tool. Fair Isaac Corporation has long dominated this space, but it introduced the FICO score in 1989 without making significant updates. That leaves the market ripe for disruption.

Moreover, the stock is down by more than 92% from its 2021 high. Still, with revenue rising by 64% in 2025 alone, the improving financials could put this fintech stock on the road to a long-awaited recovery.

Should you buy stock in Upstart right now?

Before you buy stock in Upstart, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Upstart wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $415,256!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,133,904!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 889% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 193% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of February 18, 2026.

Will Healy has positions in Sea Limited and Upstart. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Nvidia, Sea Limited, and Upstart. The Motley Fool recommends Fair Isaac. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

This article contains syndicated content. We have not reviewed, approved, or endorsed the content, and may receive compensation for placement of the content on this site. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
This section contains press releases and other materials from third parties (including paid content). The Globe and Mail has not reviewed this content. Please see disclaimer.