Lumen Technologies Inc vs Upstart Holdings Inc — how do they compare? Lumen Technologies Inc trades at $6.31 (market cap $6.58B), while Upstart Holdings Inc trades at $29.12 (market cap $2.91B). The key difference: Lumen Technologies Inc is far larger — about 2.3× Upstart Holdings Inc's market cap, and Lumen Technologies Inc is trading nearer its 52-week high, Upstart Holdings Inc nearer its low. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| LUMN | UPST | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $6.58B | $2.91B |
Sector | Media | Financials |
52-Week High | $11.83 | $73.76 |
52-Week Low | $3.95 | $24.22 |
Enterprise Value | $18.20B | — |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
LUMN stock trades at $6.375, down 3.99% today, amid a bearish technical signal and mixed earnings. The company reported a Q2 2026 loss of $0.07 per share, beating estimates, but revenue declined 9.3% year-over-year. Strategic revenues grew 14.1%, highlighting its digital transformation. CEO Kathleen Johnson purchased 100,000 shares on August 6, 2026, signaling insider confidence. Net cash flow was negative $886 million in 2025, though 2026 projections show improvement. The stock faces headwinds from high debt and legacy revenue declines.
LUMN offers a high-risk opportunity with a low P/S ratio of 0.54 and analyst consensus price target of $7.67, implying potential upside. However, persistent net losses, negative ROE of -78.94%, and $17.49 billion in long-term debt pose significant risks. Investors should weigh the digital growth potential against financial instability and cautious analyst sentiment, with 60.71% holding ratings.
Upstart trades at $29.23, down 3.24% today, with a bearish technical signal despite recent Q2 2026 earnings beat showing 42% revenue growth and return to GAAP profitability. The stock faces valuation compression concerns with a P/E of 57.48, while analyst consensus remains divided with a $47.20 price target suggesting significant upside potential from current levels.
The outlook balances strong AI-driven loan origination growth against persistent earnings misses and negative cash flow from operations. Key risks include high short interest at 27% and sensitivity to interest rate environment, though institutional sentiment appears cautiously optimistic given the 45% buy rating distribution.
Trailing returns across standard periods
With 450,000 route miles of fiber, including over 35,000 route miles of subsea fiber connecting Europe, Asia, and Latin America, Lumen Technologies is one of the United States' largest telecommunications carriers serving global enterprises. Its merger with Level 3 further shifted the company's operations toward businesses (over 70% of revenue) and away from its legacy consumer business. Lumen offers businesses a full menu of communications services, providing colocation and data center services, data transportation, and end-user phone and internet service. On the consumer side, Lumen provides broadband and phone service across 37 states, where it has 4.5 million broadband customers.
Read more on LUMN →Upstart Holdings Inc provides credit services. The company provides a proprietary, cloud-based, artificial intelligence lending platform. The platform aggregates consumer demand for loans and connects it to the network of Upstart AI-enabled bank partners. The revenue of the company is primarily comprised of fees paid by banks.
Read more on UPST →