Duolingo, Inc. $DUOL Position Boosted by Fifth Third Bancorp

Key Points

• Fifth Third Bancorp increased its Duolingo stake by 3,588.3% in the first quarter, while institutional investors collectively owned 91.59% of the company.
• Duolingo reported quarterly EPS of $0.89, exceeding the $0.79 analyst estimate, while revenue rose 26.5% year over year to $291.97 million.
• Analysts maintain a predominantly cautious stance, with the stock receiving an overall “Hold” rating and an average price target of $167.17; recent insider sales were conducted under Rule 10b5-1 plans to cover tax obligations.

Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Duolingo, Inc. (NASDAQ:DUOL - Free Report) by 3,588.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,110 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,863 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp's holdings in Duolingo were worth $898,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its position in Duolingo by 71.9% in the fourth quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 4,861,445 shares of the company's stock worth $853,184,000 after buying an additional 2,033,611 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its position in shares of Duolingo by 5,800.0% during the fourth quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 560,500 shares of the company's stock worth $98,368,000 after purchasing an additional 551,000 shares during the period. FIL Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 1,715,575.9% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 497,546 shares of the company's stock valued at $87,319,000 after purchasing an additional 497,517 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Duolingo during the fourth quarter valued at $86,159,000. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Duolingo by 22,970.4% in the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 415,268 shares of the company's stock valued at $133,650,000 after purchasing an additional 413,468 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.59% of the company's stock.

Duolingo Price Performance

Shares of DUOL opened at $122.24 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.88. Duolingo, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.89 and a fifty-two week high of $468.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 2.62. The business's 50-day moving average is $120.62 and its 200-day moving average is $116.97.

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.10. Duolingo had a net margin of 38.44% and a return on equity of 14.07%. The firm had revenue of $291.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $288.60 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 26.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Duolingo, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Natalie Glance sold 3,360 shares of Duolingo stock in a transaction on 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,696,619.59. This trade represents a 1.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 52,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,999,403.27. The trade was a 3.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,506 shares of company stock worth $1,073,864. Corporate insiders own 16.62% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUOL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Duolingo from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Evercore set a $97.00 target price on shares of Duolingo in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Duolingo from $94.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. DA Davidson restated a "neutral" rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Duolingo in a report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Duolingo from $95.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $167.17.

Duolingo 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.

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