7,610 Shares in Baidu, Inc. $BIDU Acquired by Joule Financial LLC

Joule Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 7,610 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $653,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Baidu by 28.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 160,713 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $14,791,000 after buying an additional 35,479 shares during the last quarter. Integrity Alliance LLC. bought a new stake in Baidu in the 1st quarter valued at about $247,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Baidu in the 1st quarter valued at about $922,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new stake in Baidu during the first quarter valued at about $274,000. Finally, Greenwood Capital Associates LLC boosted its position in Baidu by 36.9% during the second quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 38,976 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $3,343,000 after purchasing an additional 10,501 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BIDU. CLSA raised shares of Baidu to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 22nd. Zephirin Group assumed coverage on shares of Baidu in a report on Monday, September 15th. They set a “sell” rating and a $92.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Baidu from $108.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Arete upgraded Baidu from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $143.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Nomura boosted their price objective on Baidu from $91.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $122.42.

Baidu Stock Performance

NASDAQ BIDU opened at $142.00 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $93.46. Baidu, Inc. has a 12-month low of $74.71 and a 12-month high of $145.20. The firm has a market cap of $49.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.09 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.85, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

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.