Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) Given New $90.00 Price Target at DA Davidson

Key Points

• DA Davidson raised its price target on Duolingo to $90 (from $85) while keeping a "neutral" rating, a target that implies roughly an 18.35% downside from the prior close.
• Q1 results beat expectations — Duolingo reported $0.89 EPS vs. $0.79 est. and revenue of ~$292M (up ~26.5% YoY), with management citing AI-driven content automation and margin improvement.
• Outlook and strategy dented sentiment — management issued FY and Q2 revenue guidance roughly in line with consensus but warned of materially slower bookings growth and said it will prioritize engagement over near‑term monetization, prompting a stock drop despite the earnings beat.

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL - Get Free Report) had its price target increased by equities research analysts at DA Davidson from $85.00 to $90.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. DA Davidson's price objective would indicate a potential downside of 18.35% from the company's previous close.

DUOL has been the topic of several other reports. Zacks Research upgraded Duolingo from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $101.00 target price (down from $270.00) on shares of Duolingo in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $145.00 target price on shares of Duolingo in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group set a $245.00 target price on Duolingo in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Duolingo from $230.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $197.06.

Duolingo Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:DUOL opened at $110.23 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.61, a current ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. Duolingo has a 52-week low of $87.89 and a 52-week high of $544.93. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $100.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $157.37. The company has a market capitalization of $5.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.90.

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $291.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $288.60 million. Duolingo had a return on equity of 14.88% and a net margin of 39.91%.The business's revenue was up 26.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Duolingo will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, General Counsel Stephen C. Chen sold 1,901 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.26, for a total value of $215,307.26. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 30,545 shares in the company, valued at $3,459,526.70. This trade represents a 5.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Robert Meese sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.06, for a total value of $110,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 122,636 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,497,318.16. This trade represents a 0.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 14,939 shares of company stock worth $1,676,291. Corporate insiders own 16.62% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duolingo

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new position in shares of Duolingo in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 82.2% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 133 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in shares of Duolingo in the 3rd quarter worth about $47,000. EFG International AG purchased a new position in shares of Duolingo in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 8,900.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 180 shares of the company's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. 91.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duolingo News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Duolingo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat consensus — Duolingo reported $0.89 EPS (vs. $0.79 est.) and revenue of ~$292M, up ~26.5% year‑over‑year, showing healthy margin expansion. Zacks: Q1 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Operational efficiency and AI use — Management highlighted use of AI to automate content creation and improve product development, supporting profit margin gains reported for the quarter. MarketWatch: AI automates content creation
• Neutral Sentiment: FY and Q2 revenue guidance roughly in line — Duolingo issued FY 2026 revenue guidance around $1.2B and Q2 revenue guidance near $295.5M, roughly matching consensus, so top‑line dollar guidance was not the main surprise. GlobeNewswire: Q1 Results / Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Bookings outlook slowed — Total bookings grew ~14% in Q1 (~$308.5M) but management guided to materially slower bookings growth in Q2 (implied ~5.8% y/y) and full‑year bookings growth of ~10.5%, signaling near‑term deceleration that hurt sentiment for a growth multiple. Reuters: Growth outlook moderates
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction and investor concern — Despite the beat, shares fell after hours as investors focused on the slower bookings guidance and management’s decision to prioritize engagement/longer‑dated returns over faster monetization. Yahoo Finance: Q1 Sales Beat But Stock Drops
• Negative Sentiment: Management message: investing for later returns — Executives said current investments will yield benefits beyond 2026, which can pressure near‑term growth expectations and multiple compression for a premium growth name. See the full call transcript for detail. Seeking Alpha: Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript

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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