Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) Short Interest Up 10.2% in June

Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) saw a large growth in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,370,000 shares, a growth of 10.2% from the May 31st total of 5,780,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,290,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Baidu Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BIDU opened at $90.06 on Thursday. Baidu has a 1-year low of $85.08 and a 1-year high of $156.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.58 billion, a PE ratio of 12.06 and a beta of 0.49. The business’s 50 day moving average is $99.47 and its 200-day moving average is $104.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.79, a quick ratio of 2.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Institutional Trading of Baidu

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BIDU. LPL Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Baidu by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 44,523 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $5,982,000 after purchasing an additional 1,807 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC grew its holdings in shares of Baidu by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 8,988 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $1,208,000 after purchasing an additional 755 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Baidu by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 179,688 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $24,141,000 after purchasing an additional 2,202 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Baidu by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 8,201 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $1,102,000 after buying an additional 964 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Baidu by 66,577.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,001 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $806,000 after buying an additional 5,992 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BIDU has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. HSBC cut their price target on Baidu from $157.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on Baidu from $150.00 to $135.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Morgan Stanley downgraded Baidu from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $125.00 in a research note on Friday, May 17th. StockNews.com downgraded Baidu from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Macquarie downgraded Baidu from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Baidu has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $156.64.

Baidu Company Profile

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.