JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) Stock

Key Points

• JPMorgan raised its price target on Duolingo to $94 while keeping a "neutral" rating, a level that implies about a 9.64% downside from the prior close.
• Duolingo posted a Q1 beat with $291.97M revenue and $0.89 EPS and strong margins, but management's bookings guidance signaled a meaningful slowdown, driving the stock down about 5.6%.
• Analyst views are mixed—three Buys, 17 Holds and two Sells with a MarketBeat consensus target of $195.94—and recent insider selling plus ~91.6% institutional ownership may pressure near‑term sentiment.

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL - Get Free Report) had its price target lifted by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $92.00 to $94.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective suggests a potential downside of 9.64% from the company's previous close.

DUOL has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Duolingo from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore set a $97.00 price objective on shares of Duolingo in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Duolingo from $230.00 to $110.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Duolingo to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Duolingo from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $195.94.

Duolingo Trading Down 5.6%

Shares of DUOL traded down $6.20 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $104.03. The stock had a trading volume of 5,964,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,520,817. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $100.45 and a 200 day moving average of $157.37. The company has a market cap of $4.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.90.

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL - Get Free Report) last released 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 39.91% and a return on equity of 14.88%. The business had revenue of $291.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $288.60 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.72 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 26.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Duolingo will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Matthew Skaruppa sold 3,986 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.52, for a total transaction of $452,490.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 31,631 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,590,751.12. This represents a 11.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Natalie Glance sold 3,545 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.51, for a total transaction of $402,392.95. Following the transaction, the insider owned 115,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,096,783.80. The trade was a 2.98% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 14,939 shares of company stock valued at $1,676,291 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 16.62% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duolingo

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 249,634 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,606,000 after acquiring an additional 6,233 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 112.9% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 1,193,307 shares of the company's stock valued at $117,624,000 after acquiring an additional 632,807 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 90,040 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,875,000 after acquiring an additional 4,342 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Duolingo in the 1st quarter valued at about $246,000. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 64,034 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,311,000 after acquiring an additional 2,720 shares in the last quarter. 91.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Duolingo News

Here are the key news stories impacting Duolingo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 top‑ and bottom‑line beat — Duolingo reported revenue of about $292M and EPS of $0.89, both above consensus, and delivered healthy adjusted EBITDA margins. This confirms solid near‑term profitability and execution. Zacks: DUOL Q1 key metrics
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: Needham reaffirmed a Buy and maintained a $145 price target, signaling confidence from at least some institutional analysts in longer‑term upside. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Company guidance roughly in‑line on revenue for Q2/FY 2026 (Q2 revenue guidance ~ $295.5M; FY revenue ~ $1.2B), so the top‑line outlook itself wasn’t a big miss — the pain point is bookings growth trajectory. GlobeNewswire: Q1 results
• Neutral Sentiment: DA Davidson raised its price target modestly to $90 but kept a Neutral rating — illustrates mixed analyst views and a wide range of valuations among sell‑side firms. The Fly / Benzinga note
• Negative Sentiment: Booking growth deceleration drove the sell‑off — management’s Q2 and FY bookings guidance implies a sharp slowdown versus Q1, as Duolingo shifts toward investing in engagement and long‑dated returns rather than near‑term monetization, weighing on a growth multiple. Reuters: Growth outlook moderates
• Negative Sentiment: Investors flagged weaker user metrics and slowing bookings as the main concern despite the beat — headlines and commentary emphasized the slower user/monetization trajectory, amplifying downside. Invezz: Weak user metrics
• Negative Sentiment: Investor sentiment also soured on management remarks that investments will pay off beyond 2026 and on notable insider selling activity highlighted in market commentary — both can pressure near‑term sentiment for a previously high‑growth stock. QuiverQuant analysis

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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