Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd Sells 560,626 Shares of Baidu, Inc. $BIDU

Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd cut its stake in Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) by 62.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 331,123 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 560,626 shares during the period. Baidu accounts for 2.1% of Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Contrarius Group Holdings Ltd’s holdings in Baidu were worth $43,265,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Keel Point LLC lifted its holdings in Baidu by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Keel Point LLC now owns 5,144 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $678,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc lifted its holdings in Baidu by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 1,634 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Baidu by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,276 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $167,000 after buying an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its holdings in Baidu by 13.2% in the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 857 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Baidu by 11.6% in the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,043 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $137,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Baidu from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Zacks Research cut Baidu from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of Baidu in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $161.00 price target for the company. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Baidu in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Baidu from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.58.

Baidu Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BIDU opened at $121.66 on Monday. Baidu, Inc. has a 1-year low of $83.30 and a 1-year high of $165.30. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $125.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $129.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.85, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1,013.75, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.54.

Baidu 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.