Earnest Partners LLC Buys 146,992 Shares of Baidu, Inc. $BIDU

Earnest Partners LLC raised its stake in Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) by 21.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 818,930 shares of the information services provider’s stock after buying an additional 146,992 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC’s holdings in Baidu were worth $107,910,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Voya Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Baidu in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,027,000. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC grew its position in Baidu by 36.7% during the 3rd quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 53,291 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $7,022,000 after acquiring an additional 14,315 shares during the last quarter. Marex Group plc bought a new stake in Baidu during the 2nd quarter worth $7,200,000. Polunin Capital Partners Ltd increased its holdings in Baidu by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Polunin Capital Partners Ltd now owns 412,368 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $58,556,000 after purchasing an additional 68,496 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ARK Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Baidu by 72.7% in the 3rd quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 508,388 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $66,990,000 after purchasing an additional 213,941 shares in the last quarter.

Baidu Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of BIDU opened at $124.07 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $140.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $128.59. Baidu, Inc. has a 12 month low of $74.71 and a 12 month high of $165.30. The company has a market capitalization of $42.86 billion, a PE ratio of 78.03 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BIDU. Zacks Research lowered Baidu from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Nomura lowered their price objective on Baidu from $196.00 to $186.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Baidu from $159.00 to $181.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 2nd. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Baidu to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Baidu in a research report on Friday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Baidu currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $157.89.

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.