State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Invests $2.64 Million in Baidu, Inc. $BIDU

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D purchased a new position in shares of Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 20,065 shares of the information services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Baidu during the first quarter worth $334,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its position in Baidu by 11.9% during the second quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 169,775 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $14,560,000 after acquiring an additional 18,042 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Baidu by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,995 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $943,000 after acquiring an additional 1,007 shares in the last quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. grew its stake in Baidu by 14.0% during the 2nd quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 22,539 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,933,000 after acquiring an additional 2,762 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Baidu by 1,166.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 975 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $84,000 after acquiring an additional 898 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BIDU has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Baidu in a research report on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Baidu from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $110.00 to $188.00 in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Baidu from $159.00 to $181.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Baidu in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Baidu from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $159.94.

Baidu Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BIDU opened at $135.86 on Friday. Baidu, Inc. has a 12 month low of $74.71 and a 12 month high of $165.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.93 billion, a PE ratio of 45.14 and a beta of 0.32. 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $141.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.84.

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.