Baidu (BIDU), HK 9888; 02 (Nov 22 - Dec 26)

[winston]

vested

Baidu (9888 HK)
4Q22: Earnings Beat Expectations; AI Cloud Growth Set To Re-Accelerate

Baidu’s 4Q22 earnings came in above expectations.

Revenue was flattish yoy at Rmb33b, 3% above the street’s estimate.

Gross margin increased marginally by 1ppt yoy to 49%, in line with consensus expectations.

Non-GAAP operating profit was Rmb8.2b, up 91% yoy, while non-GAAP operating margin came in at 25%, above our estimate.

Non-GAAP net profit increased 32% yoy to Rmb5.4b on prudent cost control, 16% above consensus estimate.

Maintain BUY. Target price: HK$188.00 (US$195.00).

Source: UOBKH

https://research.uobkayhian.com/content ... 30023137fe

[winston]

vested

Brokers│Views

DBS│AI business marches towards monetization

Goldman Sachs│Quarterly results beat; 1Q ad resumed growth

BofA Securities│Core businesses are on track of recovery; company cautiously launches AI chatbot

Jefferies│Baidu embraces the new era of AI

Citi│Quarterly results beat; ad recovery is on track; Citi looks forward to ERNIE Bot

UBS│Quarterly results beat; share buyback program was proposed

Morgan Stanley│Baidu is in recovery

Nomura│4Q22 results beat street consensus

Source: AAStocks Financial News

http://www.aastocks.com/en/stocks/news/ ... t-news/HK6

[winston]

vested

Baidu Inc (BIDU US / 9888 HK) - Major beneficiary of economic recovery and advertising spend growth

Being the first to report this earnings season, Baidu’s 4Q22 results beat mainly due to
(1) low expectations
(2) less-than-expected revenue decline, and
(3) tight cost control by the company.

While core advertising revenue was weak in 4Q22, management highlighted that recovery for search advertising spend has been positive in Jan 2023 and the post-Chinese New Year period.

Operating margin, while down quarter-on-quarter (QoQ), improved year-on-year (YoY) by 660 basis points (bps).

Recovery in advertising verticals such as travel and lifestyle categories, and a focus by advertisers on performance-based advertisements are likely to benefit Baidu.

While near term financial impact of AI chatbot technology is likely to be negligible, we believe a successful initial launch of Baidu’s ERNIE chatbot could catalyse a more positive investor view towards Baidu’s longer term business potential.

We gain more confidence and turn more positive on Baidu’s outlook, seeing several tailwinds for the company in FY23:
(1) post-Covid economic recovery benefiting Baidu’s ad verticals,
(2) relatively low revenue base in FY22 and expectations for FY23 revenue growth,
(3) upcoming positive catalysts on the launches of the ERNIE chatbot in the next few months, and autonomous driving solutions in 2H23, and
(4) relatively more attractive (lower) valuations compared to peers.

We tweak our estimates for FY23 and FY24 slightly and maintain our FV at USD190 (BIDU US) / HKD184 (9888 HK). BUY.

Source: OCBC

[behappyalways]

China's answer to ChatGPT? Baidu shares tumble as it unveils Ernie Bot
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/busines ... ot-3351321

[behappyalways]

Baidu unveils China’s answer to ChatGPT, sends stocks tumbling
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mOzj8aiQ-9w

[winston]

not vested

BIDU-SW's Apollo Go Becomes First Applied Demonstration of Fully Unmanned Self-driving in Beijing

BIDU-SW (09888.HK)'s Apollo Go was the first fully unmanned self-driving applied demonstration approved in Beijing, being the first time a fully unmanned fleet of vehicles was deployed in any capital city around the world.

So far, Apollo Go has launched fully unmanned self-driving travel services in Beijing, Wuhan and Chongqing.

It was reported that Apollo Go has invested a total of 10 fully unmanned self-driving vehicles to carry out a demonstration of fully unmanned self-driving operation in a 60-square-kilometer area in the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area.

Related News: Citi Reassured of Generative Capability of Baidu's 'ERNIE Bot'

Baidu said that Baidu Apollo will continue to expand its business scale this year and focus on building the world's largest unmanned driving operational service area.

Source: AAStocks Financial News

http://www.aastocks.com/en/stocks/news/ ... t-news/HK6

[behappyalways]

Baidu soars after analysts give Ernie a thumbs-up after test-run
https://www.theedgesingapore.com/digita ... r-test-run

[winston]

Baidu Inc (9888 HK / BIDU US) - ERNIE Bot launch – look beyond the noise, moving ahead on commercialisation

We are positive on Baidu’s outlook, seeing several tailwinds for the company in FY23:
(i) post-Covid economic recovery benefiting Baidu’s ad verticals,
(ii) relatively low revenue base in FY22 and expectations for FY23 revenue growth,
(iii) upcoming positive catalysts on monetisation of ERNIE bot, and autonomous driving solutions in FY23, and
(iv) relatively more attractive (lower) valuations compared to peers.

We believe Baidu is uniquely positioned to benefit directly from the growing demand for generative AI technologies, by having significant exposure to both digital advertising and cloud infrastructure and computing businesses.

Maintain FV at HKD184 (9888 HK) / USD190 (BIDU US). BUY.

Source: OCBC

[behappyalways]

Baidu wins permits to offer fully driverless robotaxi service in Beijing
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=O9Wm0p1KzjM

[winston]

Baidu Inc (9888 HK)
1Q23 Results Will Be Solid; ERNIE Bot As The Key Market Focus

Baidu’s 1Q23 results will be released in May.

We expect solid revenue growth for the advertisement and AI cloud businesses with ad demand picking up and AIGC’s integration with AI Cloud.

We expect Baidu’s revenue and profit growth to accelerate in 2023 on a better macro environment and narrowing losses from new initiatives.

We forecast 10% yoy revenue growth and 14% yoy net profit growth for 2023.

Maintain BUY. Target price: HK$187.00 (US$193.00).

Source: UOBKH

https://research.uobkayhian.com/content ... b246d4d3b9