Investors Buy Large Volume of Baidu Call Options (NASDAQ:BIDU)

Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Investors bought 64,745 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 52% compared to the typical daily volume of 42,507 call options.

Institutional Trading of Baidu

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Baidu by 12,065.6% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,070,694 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,127,330,000 after purchasing an additional 1,061,893 shares in the last quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Baidu in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $42,748,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of Baidu in the third quarter worth $36,272,000. Hhlr Advisors LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of Baidu during the third quarter worth $31,587,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Baidu by 147.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 381,456 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $32,161,000 after acquiring an additional 227,338 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BIDU has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Dbs Bank cut Baidu from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Susquehanna downgraded Baidu from a “positive” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $85.00 in a report on Monday, November 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Baidu from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 27th. Barclays downgraded shares of Baidu from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, China Renaissance cut Baidu from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $86.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, November 25th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.75.

Baidu Stock Performance

BIDU opened at $86.40 on Friday. Baidu has a 52-week low of $77.19 and a 52-week high of $116.25. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $84.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $88.84. The company has a quick ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a market cap of $30.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.58, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.46.

About Baidu

Baidu, Inc engages in the provision of internet search services in China. It operates through two segments: Baidu Core and iQIYI. The company offers Baidu App to access search, feed, and other services using mobile devices; Baidu Search to access its search and other services; Baidu Feed that provides users with personalized timeline based on their demographics and interests; Baidu Health that helps users to find the doctor and hospital for healthcare needs; and Haokan, a short video app.