The beat supports near-term confidence, but full-year guidance confirms the deceleration trajectory outlined in Q4. Watch for Q2 bookings growth of 5.8% (guidance) as a key inflection point. The $400M buyback provides downside support but does not offset the growth slowdown.
Price Chart
Executive Summary
Duolingo reported Q1 2026 revenue of $292.0M (up 27% YoY) and GAAP EPS of $0.89, beating consensus estimates of $0.79. DAUs grew 21% to 56.5M. The company maintained its full-year guidance for ~16% revenue growth and ~10.5% bookings growth, reflecting the strategic shift to prioritize user acquisition over near-term monetization.
Key Financial Metrics
Key Facts
- Revenue $292.0M, +27% YoY, vs consensus $288.6M
- GAAP diluted EPS $0.89, vs consensus $0.79 (+12.7% beat)
- DAUs 56.5M, +21% YoY; paid subscribers 12.5M, +21% YoY
- Total bookings $308.5M, +14% YoY (9% constant currency)
- Adjusted EBITDA $83.4M, 28.6% margin, +140 bps YoY
- Free cash flow $147.8M, 50.6% FCF margin
- FY 2026 guidance: revenue ~$1,205M (+16.1%), bookings ~$1,280M (+10.5%), Adjusted EBITDA margin ~25.7%
- Repurchased ~$50.6M (514,000 shares) since Feb 2026 buyback authorization
Financial Impact
EPS beat by 12.7% on consensus of $0.79; revenue beat by 1.2%. Guidance implies H2 deceleration, with full-year revenue growth slowing to ~16% from Q1's 27%.
Risk Factors
- Execution risk of user growth strategy – Q2 bookings guidance of 5.8% YoY implies a sharp deceleration
- Currency headwinds: over half of bookings from outside US, 1% USD strength impacts FY bookings by ~$8M
- AI cost expansion pressuring gross margins from 73% to ~69% by year-end
- Stock-based compensation expected at nearly 15% of revenue in 2026, diluting EPS
Market Snapshot
Investment Themes
Documents Analyzed
This report is based on 7 SEC documents filed with EDGAR.
| Document | Accession Number |
|---|---|
| 8-K Filing (Primary) | 0001628280-26-029790 |
| Document: duol-20260504.htm | 0001628280-26-029790 |
| Document: q1fy26duolingo3-31x26xpres.htm | 0001628280-26-029790 |
| Document: 0001628280-26-029790-index-headers.html | 0001628280-26-029790 |
| Document: 0001628280-26-029790-index.html | 0001628280-26-029790 |
| Document: 0001628280-26-029790.txt | 0001628280-26-029790 |
| 8-K Data (Synthetic) | 0001628280-26-029790 |
Filters
| Type | Now | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Oct 20, 2026 6d ago | SC 13G/A | $139.58 | awaiting T+20 | — | $138.60 (−0.70%) |
Oct 7, 2026 19d ago | 144 | $151.22 | awaiting T+20 | — | $138.60 (−8.35%) |
Sep 23, 2026 4w ago | Insider Cluster | $147.75 $141.39 | ▲ +4.30% | ▲ +3.88% | $138.60 (+6.19%) |
Sep 18, 2026 5w ago | Insider Cluster | $149.42 $142.11 | ▲ +4.89% | ▲ +3.98% | $138.60 (+7.24%) |
Sep 15, 2026 5w ago | Insider Cluster | $148.17 $139.73 | ▼ −5.70% | ▼ −7.76% | $138.60 (−6.46%) |
Aug 19, 2026 9w ago | Insider Cluster | $147.03 $141.90 | ▼ −3.49% | ▼ −3.62% | $138.60 (−5.73%) |
Aug 18, 2026 9w ago | 8-K | $146.03 $147.10 | ▲ +0.73% | ▲ +2.68% | $138.60 (−5.09%) |
Aug 13, 2026 10w ago | Press Release | $144.10 $143.68 | ▼ −0.29% | ▲ +1.46% | $138.60 (−3.82%) |
Aug 12, 2026 10w ago | 3 | $144.10 $143.68 | ▼ −0.29% | ▲ +1.46% | $138.60 (−3.82%) |
Aug 10, 2026 11w ago | 8-K | $137.19 $146.39 | ▲ +6.71% | ▲ +7.62% | $138.60 (+1.03%) |
US Market Status
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