Baidu’s (BIDU) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at Benchmark

Benchmark reiterated their buy rating on shares of Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) in a research note published on Friday,Benzinga reports. Benchmark currently has a $130.00 price target on the information services provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on BIDU. Barclays cut Baidu from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Baidu from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Dbs Bank cut shares of Baidu from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. StockNews.com raised Baidu from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 27th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Baidu from $142.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.75.

Baidu Stock Performance

BIDU stock opened at $86.40 on Friday. Baidu has a one year low of $77.19 and a one year high of $116.25. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $88.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 2.19. The firm 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.

Institutional Trading of Baidu

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BIDU. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Baidu by 12,065.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,070,694 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,127,330,000 after acquiring an additional 1,061,893 shares in the last quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Baidu in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $42,748,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in Baidu in the third quarter valued at $36,272,000. Hhlr Advisors LTD. purchased a new stake in Baidu during the third quarter worth approximately $31,587,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Baidu by 147.5% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 381,456 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $32,161,000 after buying an additional 227,338 shares in the last quarter.

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.