Baidu, Inc. (BIDU) is scheduled to report its Q2 2012 results on July 23, 2012, after the bell. The street expects EPS and revenue of $1.12 and $853.34M, respectively.
In this article I will recap the historical results of the company, its latest EPS estimates vs. surprises, the latest news from BIDU and the news from its closest competitors.
Recent EPS Actuals vs. Estimates
The company has met or beaten analysts' estimates in the last four quarters. In the last quarter it reported $0.85 EPS, beating analyst estimates of $0.84.
The consensus EPS estimate is $1.12 based on 14 analysts' estimates, up from $0.72 a year ago. Revenue estimates are $853.34M, up from $528.36M a year ago. The median target price by analysts for the stock is $191.80.
Average recommendation: Buy
Source: Marketwatch
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
- On July 10, 2012, HSBC Securities initiated Overweight rating for the company.
- On April 25, 2012, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated Buy rating for the company.
- On February 13, 2012, Brean Murray reiterated Buy rating for the company.
Latest News
- On April 24, 2012, Baidu, Inc. announced that for the second quarter of 2012 it expects to generate total revenues in an amount ranging from RMB5.335 billion ($847.2 million) to RMB5.460 billion ($867.0 million).
- On April 20, 2012, Rakuten Inc. announced that it has decided to stop the e-commerce service in China, which has been provided through a joint venture established by Rakuten and Baidu, Inc.
- On February 16, 2012, Baidu, Inc. announced that for the first quarter of 2012, it expects to generate total revenues in an amount ranging from RMB4.195 billion ($666.5 million) to RMB4.330 billion ($688.0 million).
Competitors
Google (GOOG), SINA Corporation (SINA), Sohu.com (SOHU), and Yahoo! (YHOO) are considered major competitors for Baidu and the table below provides the key metrics for these companies and the industry.
The chart below compares the stock price changes as a percentage for the selected companies and S&P 500 index for the last one year period.
Competitors' Latest Development
- On July 16, 2012, Yahoo! Inc. announced that it has appointed Marissa Mayer as President and Chief Executive Officer and Member of the Board of Directors effective July 17, 2012.
- On July 10, 2012, Reuters reported that Google Inc. is close to paying $22.5 million to settle charges that it bypassed the privacy settings of customers using Apple's Safari browser, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing officials briefed on the settlement terms.
- On July 6, 2012, Yahoo! Inc. And Facebook Inc announced that they have entered into definitive agreements that launch a new advertising partnership, extend and expand distribution arrangements, and settle all pending patent claims between the companies.
- On July 6, 2012, Reuters reported that the race to become Yahoo! Inc.'s next Chief Executive (CEO) appears to have come down to two candidates, current interim CEO Ross Levinsohn and Hulu CEO Jason Kilar.
- On July 4, 2012, The Economic Times reported that Google Inc. has announced closure of five of its products, including iGoogle, Google Video and Google Chatback, in order to streamline its business.
- On July 2, 2012, Reuters reported that Google Inc. has offered to settle antitrust charges following an ultimatum by EU regulators investigating its business practices, in a move that could stave off a hefty fine.
- On June 30, 2012, Reuters reported that U.S. antitrust regulators are investigating whether Google Inc. unit Motorola Mobility is living up to licensing commitments made when its patents were adopted as industry standards.
- On June 28, 2012, Yahoo! Inc. and Clear Channel Media and Entertainment, a media company in America, announced an agreement that will enhance the way music, as well as entertainment news and information, is delivered across digital platforms in the U.S.
- On June 27, 2012, Reuters reported that Google Inc. has unveiled its first tablet PC. The Nexus 7 tablet has been built and co-branded in partnership with hardware maker Asus.
- On June 24, 2012, Reuters reported that Research In Motion, Ltd. is considering splitting its business in two, separating its struggling handset manufacturing division from its messaging network, The Sunday Times reported.
- On June 23, 2012, Reuters reported that a U.S. judge on Friday ruled that Apple Inc. cannot pursue an injunction against Google Inc.'s Motorola Mobility unit, effectively ending a key case for the iPhone maker in the smartphone patent wars.
- On June 20, 2012, Reuters reported that Yahoo! Inc. and Facebook Inc believe settlement talks in a high profile patent lawsuit would be helped if a U.S. judge pushed back certain deadlines in the case, according to a court filing on Tuesday.
- On June 14, 2012, Reuters reported that a U.S. judge has agreed to hear Apple Inc's request for an injunction against the sale of some Motorola phones, giving the iPhone maker a chance to head off a damaging ruling in the smartphone patent wars.
- On June 13, 2012, Reuters reported that Apple Inc must defend against a lawsuit accusing it of letting advertisers secretly track the activity of millions of mobile device users, a federal judge ruled, but Google Inc and several other defendants were dismissed from the case.
- On June 13, 2012, Yahoo! Inc. and CNBC announced a strategic alliance that will expand CNBC's online reach and presence and provide a broadcast platform for Yahoo! Finance's original content and contributors.
- On June 5, 2012, Dow Jones reported that Google Inc. on Tuesday announced it acquired Quickoffice, the mobile-productivity software suite known for its Android and iOS document-editing applications.
- On June 5, 2012, Reuters reported that Google Inc. will buy Meebo Inc, a startup that helps online publishers connect their websites with social network sites, Meebo said on its blog.
- On June 1, 2012, Google Inc. announced that it has filed a complaint with the European Commission against Nokia Oyj and Microsoft Corp. Google has accused Nokia Oyj and Microsoft Corp of colluding against rivals in the use of their smartphone patents.
- On May 29, 2012, Reuters reported that a French court ruled that Google Inc. is not responsible for filtering content on YouTube, asTF1 - Television Francaise 1 SA sought damages for copyrighted sports and movies which ended up on the video-sharing website.
- On May 24, 2012, Reuters reported that a German regional court ruled in a hearing on Thursday that Google Inc.'s Motorola Mobility infringed Microsoft Corp patents by offering the option on its mobile phones to send a longer text in a batch of several messages.
- On May 23, 2012, Reuters reported that Google Inc.'s Android mobile platform has not infringed Oracle Corporation's patents, a California jury decided, putting an indefinite hold on Oracle's quest for damages in a legal fight between the two companies over Smartphone technology.
- On May 22, 2012, Google Inc. announced that the acquisition of Motorola Mobility Holdings, Inc.(MMI) has closed, with Google acquiring MMI for $40.00 per share in cash.
- On May 22, 2012, Reuters reported that Yahoo! Inc. will sell as much as half of its 40% stake in Chinese e-commerce powerhouse Alibaba Group for $7.1 billion, ending years of fractious talks over how to extract value from its most prized asset.
- On May 21, 2012, Reuters reported that the European Union's antitrust Chief on Monday ratcheted up the pressure on Google Inc., giving it a matter of weeks to settle an investigation into allegations of anti-competitive behaviour and avoid formal charges and a possible fine.
- On May 21, 2012, Yahoo! Inc. and Alibaba Group Holding Limited announced they have entered into definitive agreement for a staged and comprehensive value realization plan for Yahoo!'s stake in Alibaba.
- On May 20, 2012, Reuters reported that Google Inc. said on Saturday that Chinese authorities have approved its $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. Google, announced plans for the acquisition last year.
- On May 17, 2012, Reuters reported that Iran's Foreign Ministry threatened on Thursday to take legal action against Google Inc. for dropping the name Persian Gulf from its Google Maps and leaving the waterway between Iran and Arab states nameless, state television reported.
- On May 13, 2012, Yahoo! Inc. announced that the Board of Directors has named Fred Amoroso as Chairman of the Board of Directors and Ross Levinsohn as interim Chief Executive Officer , effective immediately.
- On May 8, 2012, Reuters reported that Google Inc. infringed some of Oracle Corp's copyrights on the Java programming language, a U.S. jury found on Monday after days of deliberation.
- On May 7, 2012, The Wall Street Journal Online reported that India has launched an antitrust probe of Google Inc.'s online advertising business to investigate potential anticompetitive practices, government officials familiar with the matter say, marking the latest setback for the Internet company in an emerging market where it has lofty ambitions.
- On May 7, 2012, Rompres reported that five new United States companies will be listed on the Alternative Trading System of the Bucharest Stock Exchange International Department, starting on May 10, 2012.
- On May 5, 2012, Reuters reported that Yahoo! Inc. could be weeks away from selling 15% to 25% of Alibaba Group's stock back to the company, in a deal designed to eliminate complexities that had scuttled the parties' previous negotiations.
- On April 30, 2012, SOHU.com announced that for the second quarter of 2012, it estimates total revenues to be between USD244-USD250 million, non-GAAP net income to be between USD34-USD37 million and non-GAAP fully diluted earnings per share (EPS) to be between USD0.40-USD0.45. According to I/B/E/S Estimates, analysts were expecting the Company to report revenue of $251 million, net income of $32 million and EPS of $0.81 for the second quarter of 2012.
- On April 26, 2012, Trimble Navigation Limited announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire SketchUp, one of the 3D modeling tools in the world, from Google.
- On April 25, 2012, Attorneys from The Lanier Law Firm are representing Brighton, Colo.-based Potter Voice Technologies LLC in a federal patent infringement lawsuit against a group of cell phone manufacturers and technology companies for allegedly infringing a 14-year-old patent that covers technology used in Apple's Siri and other electronic products that rely on voice commands to control computer functions.
- On April 24, 2012, Reuters reported that Yahoo Japan Corporation's talks with key shareholder Yahoo! Inc. for a share buyback have ended with no agreement, but the companies left open the possibility of further negotiations.
- On April 19, 2012, Reuters reported that Apple Inc, Google Inc, Intel Corp and four other technology companies were ordered by a judge to face an antitrust lawsuit claiming they illegally conspired not to poach each other's employees.
Technical Overview
The stock has a market capitalization of $37.49B and is currently trading at $107.35 with a 52 week range of $100.95 - $165.96. The stock's year-to-date performance has been -7.83%. It is currently trading below 20, 50 and 200 SMA.
Sources: Yahoo Finance, Google Finance, Marketwatch, Finviz, Reuters.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.
