Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) Sets New 52-Week Low – Here’s Why

Duolingo, Inc. (NASDAQ:DUOL) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $164.06 and last traded at $163.6970, with a volume of 726355 shares. The stock had previously closed at $176.66.

Trending Headlines about Duolingo

Here are the key news stories impacting Duolingo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Preliminary Q4 operating update showed roughly 30% year‑over‑year DAU growth and bookings at or slightly above the high end of prior guidance — evidence of continuing user and revenue momentum. Duolingo Announces CFO Transition (press release)
• Positive Sentiment: Duolingo named Gillian Munson as incoming CFO (effective Feb. 23). She’s been a Duolingo board member and audit chair and has prior CFO experience at Vimeo and other companies, which supports financial continuity. Duolingo CFO stepping down, company taps former Vimeo exec as replacement
• Neutral Sentiment: The CFO change is being executed as an orderly transition: Matt Skaruppa remains CFO until Munson starts and will serve as an advisor, reducing immediate operational disruption risk. Duolingo CFO Matt Skaruppa to step down after nearly six years (Reuters)
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction has been negative: shares slid to a 52‑week low on the news and are trading below the 50‑day and 200‑day moving averages, with above‑average volume — short‑term sentiment is weak. Duolingo stock hits 52-week low (Investing.com)
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage and commentary highlight the CFO change as a near‑term catalyst for volatility; some analysts and market commentary point to valuation and execution risk as reasons for selling pressure. Duolingo Shares Hit Fresh Lows: What’s Driving The Weakness? (Benzinga)

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on DUOL. Evercore ISI set a $330.00 price objective on Duolingo and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on Duolingo from $600.00 to $300.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Duolingo from $390.00 to $230.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Duolingo from $460.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Duolingo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $301.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, January 5th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Duolingo has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $309.75.

Duolingo Trading Down 7.9%

The company has a quick ratio of 2.82, a current ratio of 2.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a PE ratio of 20.62, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $189.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $281.79.

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $5.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $5.23. Duolingo had a net margin of 40.03% and a return on equity of 14.02%. The firm had revenue of $271.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $260.14 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 41.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Duolingo, Inc. will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Severin Hacker sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.13, for a total value of $2,631,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 72 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,945.36. This represents a 99.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Matthew Skaruppa sold 3,059 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.76, for a total transaction of $537,649.84. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 37,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,588,715.12. The trade was a 7.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 53,169 shares of company stock valued at $11,605,151 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 18.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duolingo

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of DUOL. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duolingo by 1,868.2% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 433 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 411 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Duolingo by 123.9% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 87,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,190,000 after purchasing an additional 48,451 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its stake in Duolingo by 28.3% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 2,021 shares of the company’s stock worth $628,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the period. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in Duolingo during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $740,000. Finally, City Center Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duolingo during the second quarter valued at approximately $248,000. 91.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Duolingo Company 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.