DUOL (Duolingo) Owner Earnings per Share (TTM): 9.97 (As of Mar. 2026) — 87% Below Median

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DUOL Duolingo Inc DUOL
72 GF Score
Price $130.90
GF Value $397.42
Valuation Significantly Undervalued
! 5 Warning Signs
View Full Analysis

What is Duolingo Owner Earnings per Share (TTM)?

Duolingo DUOL +6.79% 72 Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 9.97 as of Mar. 2026, which is 87% below its 10-year median of 78.18. GuruFocus rates DUOL with a GF Score™ of 72/100 and a GF Value™ of $397.42 (Significantly Undervalued). The stock has 5 warning signs investors should review. Among 1,215 Software companies, Duolingo ranks better than 67.65% on this metric.

In 1986 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letter, Warren Buffett defined owner earnings as follows:

"These represent (a) reported earnings plus (b) depreciation, depletion, amortization, and certain other non-cash charges...less (c) the average annual amount of capitalized expenditures for plant and equipment, etc. that the business requires to fully maintain its long-term competitive position and its unit volume (If the business requires additional working capital to maintain its competitive position and unit volume, the increment also should be included in (c))...Our owner-earnings equation does not yield the deceptively precise figures provided by GAAP, since (c) must be a guess - and one sometimes very difficult to make. Despite this problem, we consider the owner earnings figure, not the GAAP figure, to be the relevant item for valuation purposes - both for investors in buying stocks and for managers in buying entire businesses...All of this points up the absurdity of the 'cash flow' numbers that are often set forth in Wall Street reports. These numbers routinely include (a) plus (b) - but do not subtract (c)."

Duolingo's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $9.97. It's Price-to-Owner-Earnings ratio for today is 13.13.


The historical rank and industry rank for Duolingo's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) or its related term are showing as below:

DUOL' s Price-to-Owner-Earnings Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: 8.7   Med: 78.18   Max: 139.48
Current: 13.12


During the past 7 years, the highest Price-to-Owner-Earnings ratio of Duolingo was 139.48. The lowest was 8.70. And the median was 78.18.


DUOL's Price-to-Owner-Earnings is ranked better than
67.65% of 1215 companies
in the Software industry
Industry Median: 17.38 vs DUOL: 13.12

Duolingo's Earnings per Share (Diluted) for the three months ended in Mar. 2026 was $0.89. Its Earnings per Share (Diluted) for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $8.40. It's PE Ratio (TTM) ratio for today is 15.58.

Duolingo's EPS without NRI for the three months ended in Mar. 2026 was $0.89. Its EPS without NRI for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $8.40. It's PE Ratio without NRI ratio for today is 15.58.


Be Aware

Assumption: Companies usually do not report maintenance capital expenditures and growth capital expenditures separately. Here we use estimated numbers and average them over 5 years. The method to estimate maintenance capital expenditures can be found in above part 4.

Note: GuruFocus' Change In Working Capital is provided by Morningstar. It is calculated by adding the items under "Change in operating assets and liabilities" (may refer to a different name for different company) section in Cash Flow Statement from original financial report. And it includes non-current parts of assets and liabilities.


Duolingo Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Related Terms


Duolingo Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Historical Data

* Premium members only.

The historical data trend for Duolingo's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

Duolingo Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Chart

Duolingo Annual Data
Trend Dec19 Dec20 Dec21 Dec22 Dec23 Dec24 Dec25
Owner Earnings per Share (TTM)
Get a 7-Day Free Trial 0.00 0.00 0.00 3.65 9.93

Duolingo Quarterly Data
Jun21 Sep21 Dec21 Mar22 Jun22 Sep22 Dec22 Mar23 Jun23 Sep23 Dec23 Mar24 Jun24 Sep24 Dec24 Mar25 Jun25 Sep25 Dec25 Mar26
Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 3.79 4.18 9.46 9.93 10.35

DUOL vs APPF, CVLT, NAVN: Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Comparison

For the Software - Application subindustry, Duolingo's Price-to-Owner-Earnings, along with its competitors' market caps and Price-to-Owner-Earnings data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.


Duolingo Price-to-Owner-Earnings vs Software Industry

For the Software industry and Technology sector, Duolingo's Price-to-Owner-Earnings distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where Duolingo's Price-to-Owner-Earnings falls into.


DUOL
72GF Score
Duolingo Inc DUOL
Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is just one metric. See GF Score™, valuation, warning signs, and more.
View Full Analysis

Duolingo Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Calculation

In 1986 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letter, Warren Buffett defined owner earnings as follows:

"These represent (a) reported earnings plus (b) depreciation, depletion, amortization, and certain other non-cash charges...less (c) the average annual amount of capitalized expenditures for plant and equipment, etc. that the business requires to fully maintain its long-term competitive position and its unit volume. (If the business requires additional working capital to maintain its competitive position and unit volume, the increment also should be included in (c))...Our owner-earnings equation does not yield the deceptively precise figures provided by GAAP, since (c) must be a guess - and one sometimes very difficult to make. Despite this problem, we consider the owner earnings figure, not the GAAP figure, to be the relevant item for valuation purposes - both for investors in buying stocks and for managers in buying entire businesses...All of this points up the absurdity of the 'cash flow' numbers that are often set forth in Wall Street reports. These numbers routinely include (a) plus (b) - but do not subtract (c)."

To make it simple, then you will have:

Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) = (Net Income + Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization + Change In Deferred Tax - 5Y Average of Maintenance Capital Expenditure + Change In Working Capital) / Shares Outstanding (Diluted Average)

Duolingo's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) Calculation:

TTM / Last Quarter Average of Last 20 Quarters
Net Income 422
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization 15
Change In Deferred Tax 9
5Y Average of Maintenance Capital Expenditure 12
Change In Working Capital 72
Shares Outstanding (Diluted Average) 49

1. Start with "Net Income" from income statement. Duolingo's Net Income for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $422 Mil.

2. "Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization" is from cashflow statement. Duolingo's Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $15 Mil. This needs to be added back because company does not actually need to pay cash for it. It is a non-cash item.

3. Other non-cash charges usually include "Stock Based Compensation" and "Change In Deferred Tax":
However, to be conservative, GuruFocus will not add Stock Based Compensation back to net income. Duolingo's Change In Deferred Tax for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $9 Mil.

4. Average maintenance capital expenditure over a business/industry cycle: 5-Year Average Maintenance Capital Expenditure = $12 Mil

It is usually best to take a long-term average of maintenance capital expenditure. Ideally this would be as long as 10 years and include at least one economic downturn. However, since many companies do not have as long as 10-year history, here GuruFocus uses the latest 5 years data to do the calculation. To smooth out unusual years but reflect recent developments, we take an average of the 5 year maintenance capital expenditure.

The following shows how to get maintenance capital expenditure.

First, calculate the revenue change regarding to the previous quarter. If the revenue decreased from the previous quarter, then the Maintenance Capital Expenditure = Capital Expenditure (positive).
Second, if the revenue increased from the previous quarter, then calculate the percentage of Net PPE as of corresponding Revenue.
Growth Capital Expenditure = Percentage of Property, Plant and Equipment as of corresponding Revenue * Revenue Increase
Third, calculate Capital Expenditure (positive) - Growth Capital Expenditure.
If [Capital Expenditure (positive) - Growth Capital Expenditure] was negative, then the Maintenance Capital Expenditure = Capital Expenditure (positive).
If [Capital Expenditure (positive) - Growth Capital Expenditure] was positive, then the Maintenance Capital Expenditure = Capital Expenditure (positive) - Growth Capital Expenditure.
Fourth, get the average of the 5 years maintenance capital expenditure.

Duolingo's 5-Year Average Maintenance Capital Expenditure = $12 Mil

5. "Change In Working Capital" is from cashflow statement. Duolingo's Change In Working Capital for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Mar. 2026 was $72 Mil.
Note: GuruFocus' Change in Working Capital is provided by Morningstar. It is calculated by adding the items under "Change in operating assets and liabilities" (may refer to a different name for different company) section in Cash Flow Statement from original financial report. And sometimes it includes non-current parts of assets and liabilities.

6. Duolingo's Shares Outstanding (Diluted Average) for the months ended in Mar. 2026 was 48.987 Mil.

Duolingo's Onwer Earnings Per Share for Mar. 2026 is calculated as:

Owner Earnings per Share (TTM)
=( Net Income+Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization+Change In Deferred Tax
=( 422.39 +14.992+9.496
-5Y Avg of Maintenance CAPEX+Change In Working Capital )/Shares Outstanding (Diluted Average)
-11.584425132158+71.826)/48.987
=9.97

Price-to-Owner-Earnings=Current Price/Owner Earnings per Share (TTM)
=130.90/9.97
=13.13

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

What does a Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) of 9.97 mean?
Duolingo (DUOL) has a Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) of 9.97 as of Mar. 2026. Warren Buffett defined owner earnings as reported earnings plus depreciation less average maintenance capital expenditure. View historical data on Duolingo. This is 87% below median its historical median of 78.18. Over the past decade, Duolingo's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) has ranged from 8.70 to 139.48. According to the industry distribution chart, Duolingo ranks #393 out of 1215 companies in the Software industry, placing it in the top 32.3%.
Is Duolingo's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) too high?
Duolingo's current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) of 9.97 is 87% below median its 10-year median of 78.18. Over the past 10 years, this metric has ranged from a low of 8.70 to a high of 139.48. The Software industry median Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 17.38. Duolingo's value of 9.97 is 42.6% below this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, Duolingo ranks #393 out of 1215 companies in the Software industry, which is above the industry midpoint. Overall, Duolingo has a GF Score™ of 72/100 and is considered Significantly Undervalued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Duolingo's Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) compare to APPF and CVLT?
According to the Software industry distribution chart, Duolingo ranks #393 out of 1215 companies for Owner Earnings per Share (TTM). This puts Duolingo in the upper half of its industry. The industry median Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 17.38. Duolingo's value of 9.97 is 42.6% below this benchmark. Historically, Duolingo's own Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) has ranged from 8.70 to 139.48 over the past decade. While the company's 10-year median is 78.18 vs. the industry median of 17.38, Duolingo has consistently been below the industry average. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) for a Software company?
The median Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) among Software companies is 17.38, based on 1,215 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Duolingo's current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) of 9.97 is 42.6% below the industry median. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) mean?
A high Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Warren Buffett defined owner earnings as reported earnings plus depreciation less average maintenance capital expenditure. View historical data on Duolingo. For the Software industry, the median Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 17.38 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. Duolingo's current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 9.97, which is 87% below median its own 10-year median of 78.18. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Duolingo stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Duolingo (DUOL) is currently considered Significantly Undervalued. The stock's GF Value™ is $397.42, compared to a current price of $130.90 — trading 67.1% below its estimated fair value. The current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 9.97, which is 87% below median its 10-year median of 78.18 and 42.6% below the Software industry median of 17.38. Duolingo's overall GF Score™ is 72/100 with 5 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) calculated?
Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Duolingo (DUOL), the current Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is 9.97 as of Mar. 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.

Is Duolingo (DUOL) Overvalued in 2026?

Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Duolingo stock appears to be undervalued. The current stock price of $130.90 is trading 67.1% below its estimated GF Value™ of $397.42. GuruFocus considers Duolingo to be Significantly Undervalued.

Key valuation signals for DUOL:

  • Owner Earnings per Share (TTM): 9.97 (87% below median its 10-year median of 78.18)
  • GF Value™: $397.42 vs. price of $130.90 (67.1% below fair value)
  • GF Score™: 72/100 with 5 warning signs
  • Industry Position: 42.6% below the Software median (#393 of 1215)

No single metric tells the full story. See the DUOL stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.


Duolingo Business Description

Other Exchanges DUOL:MexicoDUOL34:Brazil
Address 5900 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, USA, 15206
Duolingo Inc is a technology company that develops a mobile learning platform to learn languages. Its products are powered by sophisticated data analytics and artificial intelligence and delivered with class art, animation, and design to make it easier for learners to stay motivated, master new material, and achieve their learning goals. Its solutions include the Duolingo Language Learning App, Super Duolingo, Duolingo English Test: AI-Driven Language Assessment, Duolingo For Schools, Duolingo ABC, and Duolingo Math. It has four predominant sources of revenue: time-based subscriptions, in-app advertising placement by third parties, the Duolingo English Test, and In-App purchases. Geographically, the company generates revenue from its customers in the United States and other markets.
72GF Score

Get the complete analysis for DUOL

Owner Earnings per Share (TTM) is just one metric. See GF Value™, 30-year financials, guru trades, warning signs, and more.

$130.90
Price
$397.42
GF Value