External broker reports(aggregated public sources), CMB International

CMB International

External broker reports(aggregated public sources)

Incorporated in Hong Kong, supported by the mainland and targeting in global market, CMB International Capital Corporation Limited (“CMBI”) is an integrated financial institution providing comprehensive and professional services. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Merchants Bank ("CMB"), by leveraging on the Group’s synergy and coordination in domestic and overseas markets, as well as CMB’s strong resources and outstanding social reputation, CMBI and its subsidiaries have been actively implementing diversified business strategies and set up an overall layout of main business segments including Corporate Finance, Asset Management, Wealth Management, Global Markets and Structured Finance, etc. Adhering to the philosophy of “being clients oriented and increasing our own values by the way of creating value for clients”, CMBI endeavors to provide quality and integrated financial services to institutional, corporate and individual customers both domestic and overseas including Hong Kong IPO sponsorship and underwriting, share placement and rights issue for listed companies, financial advisors, bonds issuance services, asset management, direct investment, wealth management, equity sales and trading, etc.

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul><li>For 1Q25E, we expect Baidu Core business revenue could reach RMB24.0bn, up 1% YoY, and would be 3% better than Bloomberg consensus, mainly driven by likely better-than-expected cloud revenue growth boosted by strong AIrelated demand.</li><li>Aided by solid cloud revenue growth, we are anticipating nonGAAP operating profit of RMB4.5bn for Baidu Core, 1% better than consensus.</li><li>Baidu is still proactively driving business transformation, embedding more GenAI related search results to enhance user experience and improve user activity. </li></ul>Content is external broker report sourced from online content aggregator through publicly available sources and is displayed below for general informational purposes only. Refer full disclaimer below.

For 1Q25E, we expect Baidu Core business revenue could reach RMB24.0bn, up 1% YoY, and would be 3% better than Bloomberg consensus, mainly driven by likely better-than-expected cloud revenue growth boosted by strong AIrelated demand.Aided by solid cloud revenue growth, we are anticipating nonGAAP operating profit of RMB4.5bn for Baidu Core, 1% better than consensus.Baidu is still proactively driving business transformation, embedding more GenAI related search results to enhance user experience and improve user activity. Content is external broker report sourced from online content aggregator through publicly available sources and is displayed below for general informational purposes only. Refer full disclaimer below.

Baidu (BIDU US) - Expecting Steady Cloud Revenue Growth

Blue Lotus Non US Internet research, Blue Lotus Research Institute

Ying Pan

Blue Lotus Non US Internet research

China growth and global non-US Internet equities

Blue Lotus Research Institute

Blue Lotus Research is a Hong Kong Type 4 Licensed investment advisory firm focusing on Chinese growth equities and global non-US Internet equities

<ul>
<li>We conducted a drill exercise in which BIDU's search revenue will shrink to 1/3 of its size while its AI cloud</li>
<li>Our key concern is margin compression as search's high margin as a result of browser infrastructure and monopolistic status aren't repeatable in AI;</li>
<li>We raise the TP from US$80.0 to US$92.5 and maintain SELL.</li>
</ul>


We conducted a drill exercise in which BIDU's search revenue will shrink to 1/3 of its size while its AI cloud
Our key concern is margin compression as search's high margin as a result of browser infrastructure and monopolistic status aren't repeatable in AI;
We raise the TP from US$80.0 to US$92.5 and maintain SELL.


[Baidu, Inc. (BIDU US, SELL, TP US$92.5) TP Change]: What Can Change BIDU from SELL to a BUY?

Independent research on the U.S. markets, Baptista Research

Baptista Research

Independent research on the U.S. markets

Baptista Research is an independent financial research house focused on the U.S. markets. We provide equity research as well as credit research reports on the top-listed U.S. companies with most of our focus on technology, consumer goods and services, automobiles, industrials, oil and gas, pharma, and healthcare. Our research has served more than 3000 institutional investors including mutual funds, hedge funds, banks, family offices, and various buy-side firms. We operate a research subscription service where institutions, as well as retail investors, can have priority access to all our research. We also have a wide distribution of our research reports across some of the top global financial platforms. Apart from equity research and credit research, we also provide advisory services with respect to mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity/ venture capital fundraising, valuation reports, and investment management services for corporates.
Baptista Research is owned and managed by Ishan Majumdar, an ex-Venture Capitalist/ Investment Banker, a Chartered Accountant, and a Masters’ degree holder in Management from HEC Paris. Ishan has nearly a decade of experience in Mergers and Acquisitions, Leveraged Buyouts (LBOs), Venture Capital Investing, Corporate Strategy, and Valuation in front-office roles at the likes of BNP Paribas CIB, Credit Agricole CIB, Groupe Danone, and TIW Private Equity. He has worked on and closed multiple acquisition deals, leveraged buyouts, and start-up investment transactions.

<ul><li>Baidu's fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 financial results reveal a company navigating both challenges and opportunities, driven by its ongoing transformation into an AI-centric entity.</li><li>The reported total revenues for the fourth quarter amounted to RMB 34.1 billion, a 2% decrease year-over-year, while full-year revenues were down by 1%, at RMB 133.1 billion.</li><li>Despite these slight declines, Baidu Core's revenue performance was stable, increasing by 1% for both the fourth quarter and full year.</li></ul>

Baidu's fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 financial results reveal a company navigating both challenges and opportunities, driven by its ongoing transformation into an AI-centric entity.The reported total revenues for the fourth quarter amounted to RMB 34.1 billion, a 2% decrease year-over-year, while full-year revenues were down by 1%, at RMB 133.1 billion.Despite these slight declines, Baidu Core's revenue performance was stable, increasing by 1% for both the fourth quarter and full year.

Baidu Inc.: When Will Its Efforts Towards Generative AI

<ul>
<li>BIDU reported C4Q24 top line, non-GAAP op. profit and GAAP net income in-line, (22%) and (7.0%) vs. our est. and (3.7%), (24%) and in line vs. cons. </li>
<li>While monetization on a largely in-house app repertoire can ensure AI revenue to start kicking in in C2H25, we are concerned on the size of this revenue, </li>
<li>We maintain our SELL but raise TP to US$80 to reflect a short-term trading opportunity around AI monetization.</li>
</ul>


BIDU reported C4Q24 top line, non-GAAP op. profit and GAAP net income in-line, (22%) and (7.0%) vs. our est. and (3.7%), (24%) and in line vs. cons. 
While monetization on a largely in-house app repertoire can ensure AI revenue to start kicking in in C2H25, we are concerned on the size of this revenue, 
We maintain our SELL but raise TP to US$80 to reflect a short-term trading opportunity around AI monetization.


[Baidu, Inc. (BIDU US, SELL, TP US$80) TP Change]: AI Monetization by How Much & At What Cost?

<ul><li>Baidu announced (18 Feb) 4Q24 results: Baidu Core revenue was RMB27.7bn, 3.5% better than Bloomberg consensus estimates; non-GAAP OP of Baidu Core reached RMB4.6bn in 4Q24, 1% ahead of consensus.</li><li>For 2024, Baidu Core revenue totalled RMB104.7bn, up 1.3% YoY, and non-GAAP OP was RMB23.9bn, down 3% YoY.</li><li>Driven by both strong AI-related GPU cloud revenue growth, as well as cross-selling from GPU cloud to CPU cloud and other cloud services, the 26% YoY growth in cloud services revenue was a solid beat to consensus, and we believe the growth trend of cloud business could sustain in 2025E. </li></ul>Content is external broker report sourced from online content aggregator through publicly available sources and is displayed below for general informational purposes only. Refer full disclaimer below.

Baidu announced (18 Feb) 4Q24 results: Baidu Core revenue was RMB27.7bn, 3.5% better than Bloomberg consensus estimates; non-GAAP OP of Baidu Core reached RMB4.6bn in 4Q24, 1% ahead of consensus.For 2024, Baidu Core revenue totalled RMB104.7bn, up 1.3% YoY, and non-GAAP OP was RMB23.9bn, down 3% YoY.Driven by both strong AI-related GPU cloud revenue growth, as well as cross-selling from GPU cloud to CPU cloud and other cloud services, the 26% YoY growth in cloud services revenue was a solid beat to consensus, and we believe the growth trend of cloud business could sustain in 2025E. Content is external broker report sourced from online content aggregator through publicly available sources and is displayed below for general informational purposes only. Refer full disclaimer below.

Baidu (BIDU US) - Solid Cloud Revenue Growth a Bright Spot

China

Baidu, Inc. operates an Internet search engine. The Company offers algorithmic search, enterprise search, news, MP3, and image searches, voice assistance, online storage, and navigation services. Baidu serves clients globally.

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Baidu (BIDU US)

Baidu (BIDU US) - Expecting Steady Cloud Revenue Growth

We finetune our SOTP-based target price to US$146.7 (was US$149.2) mainly to account for the change in investment valuation, translating into 13.9x...

CMB International

[Baidu, Inc. (BIDU US, SELL, TP US$92.5) TP Change]: What Can Change BIDU from SELL to a BUY?

Concerns about margin compression for BIDU due to shrinking search revenue and the unreliability of high margins in AI lead to a maintained SELL...

Blue Lotus Research Institute

Baidu Inc.: When Will Its Efforts Towards Generative AI

Baidu's fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 financial results reveal a company navigating both challenges and opportunities, driven by its ongoing...

Baptista Research

[Baidu, Inc. (BIDU US, SELL, TP US$80) TP Change]: AI Monetization by How Much & At What Cost?

BIDU reports in-line financials for Q4, concerns remain on AI revenue potential, analysts maintain SELL rating but raise price target to $80.

Blue Lotus Research Institute

Baidu (BIDU US) - Solid Cloud Revenue Growth a Bright Spot

Baidu Core revenue was RMB27.7bn, 3.5% better than Bloomberg consensus estimates; non-GAAP OP of Baidu Core reached RMB4.6bn in 4Q24, 1% ahead of...

CMB International

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52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

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Baidu (BIDU US) - Expecting Steady Cloud Revenue Growth

We finetune our SOTP-based target price to US$146.7 (was US$149.2) mainly to account for the change in investment valuation, translating into 13.9x...

CMB International

[Baidu, Inc. (BIDU US, SELL, TP US$92.5) TP Change]: What Can Change BIDU from SELL to a BUY?

​Concerns about margin compression for BIDU due to shrinking search revenue and the unreliability of high margins in AI lead to a maintained SELL...

Blue Lotus Research Institute

Baidu Inc.: When Will Its Efforts Towards Generative AI

Baidu's fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 financial results reveal a company navigating both challenges and opportunities, driven by its ongoing...

Baptista Research

[Baidu, Inc. (BIDU US, SELL, TP US$80) TP Change]: AI Monetization by How Much & At What Cost?

​BIDU reports in-line financials for Q4, concerns remain on AI revenue potential, analysts maintain SELL rating but raise price target to $80.

Blue Lotus Research Institute

Baidu (BIDU US) - Solid Cloud Revenue Growth a Bright Spot

Baidu Core revenue was RMB27.7bn, 3.5% better than Bloomberg consensus estimates; non-GAAP OP of Baidu Core reached RMB4.6bn in 4Q24, 1% ahead of...

CMB International

Concerns about margin compression for BIDU due to shrinking search revenue and the unreliability of high margins in AI lead to a maintained SELL...

BIDU reports in-line financials for Q4, concerns remain on AI revenue potential, analysts maintain SELL rating but raise price target to $80.