Duolingo Inc's stock fell 3.04% and hit a 52-week low amid broader market gains, with the Nasdaq-100 up 0.48% and the S&P 500 up 0.23%.
The company's CFO, Matt Skaruppa, will step down after nearly six years, transitioning to an advisory role, which signifies a significant leadership change. Despite this, Duolingo reported a 30% increase in daily active users for the December quarter, aligning closely with expectations, indicating sustained user engagement. However, bookings for the fourth quarter were slightly below expectations, reflecting ongoing efforts in profitability.
This leadership change comes at a time when Duolingo is focusing on monetization and improving teaching quality to attract more users. The market's positive sentiment towards the company, driven by user growth, contrasts with the stock's decline, suggesting potential sector rotation.
Wall Street analysts forecast DUOL stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for DUOL is 260.36 USD with a low forecast of 160.00 USD and a high forecast of 330.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
17 Analyst Rating
Wall Street analysts forecast DUOL stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for DUOL is 260.36 USD with a low forecast of 160.00 USD and a high forecast of 330.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
10 Buy
6 Hold
1 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 151.560
Low
160.00
Averages
260.36
High
330.00
Current: 151.560
Low
160.00
Averages
260.36
High
330.00
Wells Fargo
Alec Brondolo
Underweight
downgrade
$185 -> $160
2026-01-08
Reason
Wells Fargo
Alec Brondolo
Price Target
$185 -> $160
AI Analysis
2026-01-08
downgrade
Underweight
Reason
Wells Fargo analyst Alec Brondolo lowered the firm's price target on Duolingo to $160 from $185 and keeps an Underweight rating on the shares. Ahead of quarterly results, the firm is decreasing Q4 daily average user estimates to positive 27% year-over-year vs. consensus positive 30% based on weaker 3P data through the quarter. Social engagement recovered to some extent through Q4, but the "hits" needed to re-accelerate growth remain elusive, Wells adds.
Truist
initiated
$245
2026-01-06
Reason
Truist
Price Target
$245
2026-01-06
initiated
Reason
Truist initiated coverage of Duolingo with a Buy rating and $245 price target. Duolingo has built the leading language-learning platform since its founding in 2011, reaching more than 135M monthly active users with over 11M paying subscribers as of 3Q25, the analyst tells investors in a research note. With the recent releases of Math, Music, and Chess courses, Duolingo has showcased its ability to continue innovating, providing significant new levers to drive user and top-line growth, and extending its app to a full EdTech platform beyond just languages, and AI is a potential significant tailwind for Duolingo, the firm says.
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BofA
Curtis Nagle
Neutral -> Buy
upgrade
$301 -> $250
2026-01-05
Reason
BofA
Curtis Nagle
Price Target
$301 -> $250
2026-01-05
upgrade
Neutral -> Buy
Reason
BofA analyst Curtis Nagle upgraded Duolingo to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $250, down from $301.
BofA
Curtis Nagle
Neutral -> Buy
upgrade
$301 -> $250
2026-01-05
Reason
BofA
Curtis Nagle
Price Target
$301 -> $250
2026-01-05
upgrade
Neutral -> Buy
Reason
BofA analyst Curtis Nagle upgraded Duolingo to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $250, down from $301, as the firm believes its value proposition as an entertainment product is not reflected in growth forecasts. Duolingo's rapid-fire, bite-sized lesson plans provide superior entertainment value than the majority of mobile gaming apps, contends the analyst, who also thinks Duolingo's 95% annual subscriber rate, and 23% payer/DAU ratio, demonstrate the app's superior value proposition than mobile games.
About DUOL
Duolingo, Inc. is a technology company. The Company is engaged in offering a mobile learning platform, as well as a digital English language proficiency assessment exam. It operates a freemium business model, namely, the app and the Website are accessible free of charge, although Duolingo also offers premium services for a subscription fee. Its solutions consist of the Duolingo App, Super Duolingo, Duolingo Max, Duolingo English Test: AI-Driven Language Assessment, Duolingo for Schools, and Duolingo ABC. The Duolingo App offers courses in over 40 different languages, including Spanish, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese and Chinese. Duolingo can also be accessed on desktop computers via a Web browser. Its subscription offering, Super Duolingo, offers learners additional features to enhance their learning experience. The Duolingo English Test is an online, on-demand, high-stakes English proficiency assessment. It also operates an animation and motion design studio.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
