Duolingo, Inc. (NASDAQ:DUOL) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Duolingo, Inc. (NASDAQ:DUOL) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,440,000 shares, a growth of 5.1% from the January 15th total of 1,370,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 572,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days. Approximately 4.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Duolingo Stock Performance

NASDAQ DUOL traded up $2.37 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $432.69. The stock had a trading volume of 724,261 shares, compared to its average volume of 538,330. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $349.58 and a 200 day moving average of $296.17. The stock has a market cap of $19.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 236.44 and a beta of 0.89. Duolingo has a 52-week low of $145.05 and a 52-week high of $436.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 3.09 and a current ratio of 3.09.

Insider Activity at Duolingo

In related news, insider Severin Hacker sold 188,901 shares of Duolingo stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $339.54, for a total value of $64,139,445.54. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 72 shares in the company, valued at $24,446.88. The trade was a 99.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Natalie Glance sold 1,500 shares of Duolingo stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $369.33, for a total value of $553,995.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 132,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,839,829.87. The trade was a 1.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 289,624 shares of company stock worth $98,478,298 over the last three months. 18.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duolingo

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Duolingo in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,994,000. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Duolingo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $429,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Duolingo by 42.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 342,280 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,530,000 after buying an additional 101,653 shares during the period. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC raised its stake in shares of Duolingo by 17.8% during the 3rd quarter. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC now owns 11,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,284,000 after buying an additional 1,760 shares during the period. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Duolingo during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,350,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.59% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUOL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Duolingo from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Duolingo from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Duolingo from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Duolingo from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $355.00 to $375.00 in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Duolingo in a research note on Friday, January 24th. They set a “hold” rating and a $370.00 price target on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $355.55.

Duolingo Company Profile

Duolingo, Inc operates as a mobile learning platform in the United States, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company offers courses in 40 different languages, including Spanish, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, and Chinese through its Duolingo app. It also provides a digital English language proficiency assessment exam.