Baidu Inc. (BIDU) ended the recent trading session at $108.22, demonstrating a -1.45% change from the preceding day's closing price. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.89%. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.74%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 1.29%.
Coming into today, shares of the web search company had lost 1.73% in the past month. In that same time, the Computer and Technology sector lost 6.6%, while the S&P 500 lost 0.63%.
The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Baidu Inc. in its forthcoming earnings report. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $1.51, reflecting a 20.53% decrease from the same quarter last year. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $4.65 billion, reflecting a 1.86% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.
BIDU's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $6.82 per share and revenue of $19.73 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of -10.73% and +8.98%, respectively.
It's also important for investors to be aware of any recent modifications to analyst estimates for Baidu Inc. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.
Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, spanning from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), boasts an impressive track record of outperformance, audited externally, with #1 ranked stocks yielding an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 21.18% lower. Currently, Baidu Inc. is carrying a Zacks Rank of #5 (Strong Sell).
Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Baidu Inc. has a Forward P/E ratio of 16.11 right now. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 17.28, so one might conclude that Baidu Inc. is trading at a discount comparatively.
Also, we should mention that BIDU has a PEG ratio of 1.87. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. BIDU's industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.87 as of yesterday's close.
The Internet - Services industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 100, putting it in the top 41% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Keep in mind to rely on Zacks.com to watch all these stock-impacting metrics, and more, in the succeeding trading sessions.
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Baidu, Inc. (BIDU): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).