Duolingo, Inc. (NASDAQ:DUOL) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts give Duolingo an average recommendation of Hold from 23 brokerages (2 sell, 17 hold, 4 buy) with a 12‑month average price target of about $206.32, and several firms have sharply cut targets recently (e.g., Goldman Sachs to $105, JPMorgan to $95, Needham to $145).
• Insider activity is mixed: Director James H. Shelton purchased 5,000 shares at ~$99.76 while insiders sold 14,939 shares in the past 90 days, and insiders collectively own 15.67% of the company.
• Fundamentals show a recent quarter beat (EPS $0.91 vs $0.79, revenue $282.9M vs $275.9M, revenue +35% YoY); Duolingo has a $4.65B market cap, P/E of 11.8, and a wide 52‑week range of $87.89–$544.93, indicating high volatility.

Duolingo, Inc. (NASDAQ:DUOL - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the twenty-three brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $206.3158.

DUOL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson set a $85.00 target price on Duolingo in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on shares of Duolingo from $300.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $95.00 target price (down from $200.00) on shares of Duolingo in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Truist Financial lowered Duolingo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $100.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Duolingo from $250.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 2nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James H. Shelton acquired 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $99.76 per share, for a total transaction of $498,800.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 9,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $960,888.32. This trade represents a 107.94% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Natalie Glance sold 3,545 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.51, for a total value of $402,392.95. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 115,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,096,783.80. This represents a 2.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 14,939 shares of company stock worth $1,676,291. Insiders own 15.67% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duolingo

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of DUOL. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in Duolingo in the third quarter worth $32,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Duolingo by 82.2% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 133 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new position in Duolingo in the third quarter worth $47,000. EFG International AG acquired a new position in Duolingo in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its stake in Duolingo by 8,900.0% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 180 shares of the company's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. 91.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duolingo Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:DUOL opened at $100.51 on Friday. Duolingo has a fifty-two week low of $87.89 and a fifty-two week high of $544.93. The business has a 50-day moving average of $102.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $172.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.61 and a quick ratio of 2.61.

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.12. Duolingo had a return on equity of 14.88% and a net margin of 39.91%.The company had revenue of $282.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $275.95 million. The company's quarterly revenue was up 35.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Duolingo will post 2.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Duolingo

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.

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