Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Lowers Position in Baidu, Inc. $BIDU

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its Baidu stake by 15.2% in the first quarter, selling 101,841 shares and leaving it with 567,778 shares worth about $63.3 million.
• Other institutional investors made smaller adjustments, with several firms modestly increasing their Baidu holdings during recent quarters.
• Baidu shares recently traded at $117.53, and analysts remain broadly positive overall, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $162.58.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU - Free Report) by 15.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 567,778 shares of the information services provider's stock after selling 101,841 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.17% of Baidu worth $63,262,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in Baidu by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 20,112 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $2,628,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Keel Point LLC increased its holdings in Baidu by 1.7% in the third quarter. Keel Point LLC now owns 5,144 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $678,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc increased its holdings in Baidu by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 1,634 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $213,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Baidu by 25.9% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 428 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of Baidu by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,276 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $167,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period.

Baidu Price Performance

Shares of BIDU stock traded up $0.02 on Friday, reaching $117.53. 1,308,366 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,070,458. The company has a market cap of $39.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -979.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $124.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a current ratio of 1.85. Baidu, Inc. has a 1 year low of $84.64 and a 1 year high of $165.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BIDU has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Nomura raised their target price on Baidu from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Baidu in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Baidu from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Baidu from $135.00 to $140.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Baidu in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Baidu has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $162.58.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.