Insider Selling: Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) Director Sells $1,456,700.00 in Stock

Duolingo, Inc. (NASDAQ:DUOL) Director William Gordon sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.67, for a total value of $1,456,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 68,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,966,013.05. The trade was a 12.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Duolingo Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of Duolingo stock opened at $143.68 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 2.72. Duolingo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.89 and a 52-week high of $353.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $137.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $118.02.

Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $298.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $295.58 million. Duolingo had a return on equity of 12.10% and a net margin of 35.88%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.91 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Duolingo, Inc. will post 2.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Headlines Impacting Duolingo

Here are the key news stories impacting Duolingo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Duolingo reportedly retains 68% of users, a level highlighted as stronger than retention at popular mobile games such as Candy Crush and Royal Match. The comparison reinforces the platform’s engagement and could support the company’s subscription growth story. Duolingo user retention article
• Positive Sentiment: Duolingo received widespread free publicity after Apple introduced a foldable phone called the “iPhone Duo.” The company’s humorous social-media response, including exchanges with Samsung, generated substantial meme coverage and may increase brand awareness and engagement, although no immediate financial benefit was quantified. iPhone Duo memes article
• Positive Sentiment: A new Duolingo clothing line tied to language and pronunciation is expanding the brand beyond its core learning app. The initiative could create additional marketing reach and potential merchandise revenue, though its financial impact remains uncertain. Duolingo clothing line article
• Neutral Sentiment: Director William Gordon sold 10,000 shares for approximately $1.46 million, reducing his position by 12.75%. Because the transaction was conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, it is a limited discretionary signal, but it may still weigh modestly on sentiment. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: A widely circulated CEO account claiming ChatGPT taught him Spanish more effectively than Duolingo highlights the competitive threat from AI language-learning tools. Although anecdotal, the commentary could raise concerns about Duolingo’s long-term differentiation and weigh on the stock. ChatGPT language-learning article

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Duolingo from $95.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Duolingo from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Wedbush increased their target price on Duolingo from $139.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Argus reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $146.00 price target on shares of Duolingo in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Scotiabank set a $120.00 target price on shares of Duolingo in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duolingo currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $124.38.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUOL. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Duolingo during the second quarter valued at approximately $379,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duolingo in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $328,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Duolingo by 92.9% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,491 shares of the company’s stock worth $171,000 after buying an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Duolingo by 881.9% during the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 69,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,975,000 after buying an additional 62,270 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Duolingo by 268.9% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,907 shares of the company’s stock worth $219,000 after buying an additional 1,390 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.59% of the company’s stock.

Duolingo Company Profile

Duolingo, Inc develops digital learning products designed to make education accessible through mobile devices and the web. Its primary product is the Duolingo language-learning platform, which offers courses in numerous languages through interactive, game-like lessons, practice exercises and personalized learning features.

The company also provides the Duolingo English Test, an online English-proficiency assessment used by educational institutions and other organizations. In addition, Duolingo has expanded beyond language learning with products such as Duolingo Math and Duolingo Music, while offering premium subscription features through plans including Super Duolingo and Duolingo Max.

Duolingo serves users internationally, with its applications and online services available across a broad range of geographies.