Short Interest in Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) Decreases By 7.4%

Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in the month of April. As of April 30th, there was short interest totalling 6,010,000 shares, a decrease of 7.4% from the April 15th total of 6,490,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,410,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.8 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Baidu

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Baidu during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Headinvest LLC acquired a new stake in Baidu during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Baidu during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Baidu during the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Baidu during the 4th quarter valued at $42,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BIDU. Mizuho decreased their target price on Baidu from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Benchmark decreased their target price on Baidu from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Baidu from $181.00 to $176.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Barclays decreased their target price on Baidu from $138.00 to $133.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Baidu from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $166.64.

Baidu Price Performance

Shares of BIDU traded up $1.84 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $112.59. The company had a trading volume of 9,216,437 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,444,529. Baidu has a twelve month low of $94.25 and a twelve month high of $156.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 3.01 and a quick ratio of 3.01. The company's 50-day moving average is $104.11 and its 200-day moving average is $108.17. The company has a market capitalization of $39.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.53 and a beta of 0.68.

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.

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