Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) Receives Sector Perform Rating from Scotiabank

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating restated by research analysts at Scotiabank in a research report issued on Friday. They currently have a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank’s target price would suggest a potential downside of 14.86% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Duolingo from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Duolingo from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. UBS Group set a $245.00 target price on shares of Duolingo in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Truist Financial set a $245.00 price target on shares of Duolingo in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Evercore set a $330.00 price objective on Duolingo and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $240.26.

Duolingo Stock Performance

Duolingo stock opened at $117.45 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.86. Duolingo has a 12 month low of $104.51 and a 12 month high of $544.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 2.82. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $146.18 and its 200-day moving average is $226.19.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Matthew Skaruppa sold 3,986 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.52, for a total transaction of $452,490.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,631 shares in the company, valued at $3,590,751.12. This trade represents a 11.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Robert Meese sold 1,000 shares of the business’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 position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,939 shares of company stock worth $1,676,291. 15.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Duolingo

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DUOL. EFG International AG bought a new stake in shares of Duolingo in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in shares of Duolingo in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duolingo in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Duolingo in the 2nd quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Duolingo by 82.2% during 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.59% of the company’s stock.

Duolingo News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Duolingo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beats: Duolingo reported $0.91 EPS (above $0.78 est.) and $282.9M revenue (above ~$276M est.), and said it closed 2025 with >50M DAU and >$1B in bookings — evidence of strong underlying user and profitability metrics. Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Long-term user target: Management set a goal of ~20% DAU growth and 100M users by 2028, signaling an aggressive growth push that could expand monetization opportunities if achieved. Seeking Alpha
• Neutral Sentiment: AI and buyback discussion: Management plans increased AI investment and has discussed buyback activity; these moves aim to defend market position but raise near-term cost and valuation questions. Yahoo Finance
• Negative Sentiment: Strategy shift hits guidance: Duolingo warned FY‑2026 revenue ~ $1.2B vs. consensus ~$1.3B and Q1 revenue ~$288.5M vs. ~$289.3M est., and forecast softer bookings as it prioritizes DAU growth — the weaker forward outlook spooked investors. WSJ
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction and volatility: Coverage and headlines note a sharp share drop after the call as Wall Street reacts negatively to sacrificing near-term revenue for DAU — Barron’s calls the strategy shake‑up a key reason for the stock plunge. Barron’s
• Negative Sentiment: Investor/legal risk: A law firm (Johnson Fistel) announced an investigation into potential securities claims tied to Duolingo executives, which can increase legal uncertainty and investor concern. Newsfile
• Negative Sentiment: Rising short interest: Short interest jumped in February (to ~23% of float), raising the potential for continued selling pressure and volatility. InsiderMonkey

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.