Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) was downgraded by equities researchers at TH Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.
A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Vetr upgraded Baidu from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $213.48 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 27th. Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $238.00 target price (down from $240.00) on shares of Baidu in a research report on Monday, May 2nd.
Brean Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Baidu in a research report on Tuesday, June 21st. Bank of America Corp reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of Baidu in a research report on Wednesday, April 27th. Finally, Jefferies Group increased their target price on Baidu from $196.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 25th.
Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Baidu currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $201.72.
A number of large investors recently modified their holdings of BIDU. Cornerstone Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Baidu by 0.8% in the second quarter. Cornerstone Advisors Inc. now owns 605 shares of the company's stock, worth $100,000, after buying an additional 5 shares during the last quarter.
WealthTrust Arizona LLC increased its stake in shares of Baidu by 12.1% in the second quarter. WealthTrust Arizona LLC now owns 777 shares of the company's stock, worth $128,000, after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter.
Barnett & Company Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Baidu during the first quarter worth $164,000. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group bought a new stake in shares of Baidu during the first quarter, worth $202,000.
Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its stake in shares of Baidu by 111.2% in the first quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 1,299 shares of the company's stock, worth $248,000, after buying an additional 684 shares during the last quarter.
Shares of Baidu traded down 3.64% on Friday, reaching $159.60. 7,856,106 shares of the company's stock were exchanged. The company's 50 day moving average is $163.09 and its 200-day moving average is $171.36. The stock has a market cap of $55.27 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.34. Baidu has a one-year low of $100.00 and a one-year high of $217.97.
Baidu last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 28th. The company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters' consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.10. The business earned $2.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Baidu will post $4.54 EPS for the current year.
Company
Baidu, Inc is a Chinese language Internet search provider. The Company offers a Chinese language search platform on its Baidu.com Website that enables users to find information online, including Webpages, news, images, documents and multimedia files, through links provided on its Website. In addition to serving individual Internet search users, the Company provides a platform for businesses to reach customers.