Duolingo stock plunges 80%

Duolingo’s stock is trading near $103, down about 81% from its May 14, 2025 record close of $540.68. (google.com) (macrotrends.net) The drop did not come after a collapse in the business. On February 26, Duolingo reported fourth-quarter 2025 revenue of $282.9 million, up 35% year over year, with 52.7 million daily active users and 12.2 million paid subscribers. (sec.gov) (fastcompany.com) What changed was the company’s plan for 2026. Chief executive Luis von Ahn said Duolingo would “deliberately” prioritize user growth and better teaching, even if that “moderates near-term financial growth.” (sec.gov) (fastcompany.com) Duolingo guided for 2026 bookings growth of 10% to 12%, revenue growth of 15% to 18%, and an adjusted EBITDA margin of about 25%, down from 29.5% in 2025. (finance.yahoo.com) (gurufocus.com) That guidance reset hit a stock that had been priced for much faster expansion. Duolingo’s 52-week high was $544.93, and its market cap has fallen to about $4.84 billion. (stockanalysis.com) (macrotrends.net) The company says the slower near-term growth is tied to a broader product push. Von Ahn told investors Duolingo wants to improve the free tier and build new growth engines in chess, math, and music while using artificial intelligence more aggressively. (sec.gov) That strategy is already showing up in the app. On April 22, Duolingo said advanced language-learning content would be available free in nine languages across web, iOS, and Android. (techcrunch.com) Investors now have a near-term date to watch. Duolingo said on April 6 that it will report first-quarter 2026 results on Monday, May 4, 2026. (stockanalysis.com) So the 80% plunge is less a story about shrinking revenue than a repricing of expectations. Duolingo is still growing, but Wall Street is waiting to see whether free-user growth and artificial-intelligence features can turn back into faster bookings. (sec.gov) (finance.yahoo.com)