UBS Group Upgrades Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) to “Strong-Buy”

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) was upgraded by stock analysts at UBS Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on DUOL. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Duolingo in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Scotiabank set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Duolingo in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Duolingo from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Duolingo from $82.00 to $80.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Duolingo from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $148.12.

Duolingo Stock Performance

NASDAQ DUOL opened at $130.90 on Thursday. Duolingo has a 1-year low of $87.89 and a 1-year high of $415.76. The company has a market capitalization of $6.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.51, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $125.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $115.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 2.62.

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $298.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $295.58 million. Duolingo had a return on equity of 12.10% and a net margin of 35.88%.Duolingo’s revenue was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.91 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Duolingo will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Duolingo

In related news, insider Natalie Glance sold 3,360 shares of Duolingo stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.59, for a total transaction of $381,662.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 173,401 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,696,619.59. This trade represents a 1.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, General Counsel Stephen C. Chen sold 1,977 shares of Duolingo stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.61, for a total value of $224,606.97. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 52,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,999,403.27. This represents a 3.61% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 9,506 shares of company stock valued at $1,073,864 over the last quarter. Insiders own 16.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duolingo

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in Duolingo by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 940 shares of the company’s stock valued at $385,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Duolingo by 5.0% in the second quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $335,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 0.6% during the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 11,740 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,778,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 8,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,571,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Duolingo by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,139 shares of the company’s stock worth $520,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. 91.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Duolingo News

Here are the key news stories impacting Duolingo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Duolingo exceeded second-quarter expectations, reporting adjusted earnings of $0.66 per share versus consensus of roughly $0.60-$0.61, while revenue rose 18.3% year over year to $298.5 million, above the $295.6 million estimate. DUOL Q2 Earnings Beat Estimates on Strong User Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Daily active users increased 23% year over year, and paid subscribers continued to grow, reinforcing Duolingo’s long-term expansion strategy. Management also cited lower artificial-intelligence costs as a factor supporting profitability. Duolingo stock sinks 15% as Q3 revenue forecast misses expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Needham reaffirmed its Buy rating and set a $145 price target, while Truist raised its target to $120 from $100, indicating some analysts see value after the recent selloff. Analyst ratings and price targets
• Neutral Sentiment: Management is prioritizing engagement and user growth, targeting 100 million daily active users by 2028, but projected 2026 revenue growth of approximately 16% signals a materially slower pace than Duolingo’s historical expansion. Duolingo outlines 2026 revenue growth of approximately 16%
• Negative Sentiment: The main overhang is Duolingo’s third-quarter revenue forecast, which fell below Wall Street expectations. The guidance overshadowed the earnings and user-growth beats, prompting a sharp post-earnings selloff and raising concerns that the company’s growth engine is slowing. Duolingo posts better-than-expected sales but stock drops
• Negative Sentiment: Bank of America downgraded Duolingo to Underperform, and Truist’s Hold rating with a $120 target remains below the recent trading level, reflecting valuation and execution concerns. Bank of America downgrades Duolingo

Duolingo Company Profile

Duolingo, Inc (NASDAQ:DUOL) is a technology-driven education company that operates a widely used language-learning platform. Founded in 2011 by Luis von Ahn and Severin Hacker, Duolingo offers a freemium service featuring bite-sized lessons, gamified exercises and adaptive learning algorithms. The company’s core product is its mobile and web application, which supports instruction in more than 40 languages, ranging from widely spoken tongues such as English and Spanish to lesser-taught options including Irish and Swahili.

In addition to its flagship language courses, Duolingo has expanded its product suite to include the Duolingo English Test, an on-demand, computer-based English proficiency exam designed for academic and professional admissions.