Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Trims Stake in Baidu, Inc. $BIDU

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. reduced its holdings in Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) by 98.0% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,632 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 127,735 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Baidu were worth $293,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of BIDU. Everstar Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Baidu by 134.5% in the first quarter. Everstar Asset Management LLC now owns 9,850 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,097,000 after acquiring an additional 5,650 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Baidu by 6.0% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 385,315 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $42,932,000 after purchasing an additional 21,813 shares during the last quarter. Sankala Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Baidu in the 4th quarter worth about $46,000. Compound Planning Inc. increased its position in shares of Baidu by 22.6% during the 4th quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 6,418 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $839,000 after purchasing an additional 1,181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Baidu by 350.5% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 22,739 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $2,971,000 after buying an additional 17,692 shares in the last quarter.

Baidu Price Performance

Shares of Baidu stock opened at $113.30 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $125.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $128.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.55 billion, a PE ratio of -944.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.56. Baidu, Inc. has a 52-week low of $84.64 and a 52-week high of $165.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a current ratio of 1.85.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on BIDU. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Baidu in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Baidu from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Baidu from $135.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Baidu from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Nomura boosted their target price on Baidu from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $162.58.

About Baidu

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.