Nomura Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) Stock

Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) had its target price upped by equities researchers at Nomura from $178.00 to $196.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the information services provider’s stock. Nomura’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 21.41% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on BIDU. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Baidu from $81.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. Zacks Research upgraded Baidu from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 19th. National Bankshares raised Baidu to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Baidu from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, January 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $150.00 price objective on Baidu in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Baidu currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $153.17.

Baidu Trading Down 0.7%

NASDAQ BIDU opened at $161.44 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.91. The firm has a market cap of $55.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.63 and a beta of 0.30. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $130.93 and its 200-day moving average is $117.15. Baidu has a one year low of $74.71 and a one year high of $165.30.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. PFG Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Baidu during the 4th quarter worth approximately $267,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Baidu by 535.5% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,453 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $321,000 after buying an additional 2,067 shares in the last quarter. BSW Wealth Partners grew its stake in shares of Baidu by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 1,651 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $216,000 after buying an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Baidu by 48.3% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,132 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $279,000 after buying an additional 694 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower View Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Baidu during the fourth quarter worth $1,367,000.

Baidu Company Profile

Baidu, Inc, founded in 2000 and headquartered in Beijing, is a Chinese multinational technology company best known for operating one of China’s leading internet search engines. The company built its business around online search and related advertising services, providing search, content aggregation and targeted ad placements to consumers and marketers across China. Baidu went public on the NASDAQ in 2005 and has since diversified beyond search into a broader technology and AI-focused portfolio.

Core products and services include the Baidu search platform and mobile app, Baidu Maps and Baidu Baike (an online encyclopedia), along with digital content initiatives.