UPDATE: Deutsche Bank Downgrades AutoNavi Following Disappointing 2Q Results

In a report published Thursday, Deutsche Bank analyst Vivian Hao downgraded the rating on

from Buy to Hold, and lowered the price target from $15.10 to $11.90. In the report, Deutsche Bank noted, “AMAP reported disappointing 2Q results, missing our estimate by 8% and Street by 13%/35% on revenue/NP. Meanwhile, the company announced it will provide its premium mobile navigation app for free in response to Baidu's similar offering, which we regard as an aggressive strategy and a trade-off between revenue income and market share gain. We expect this strategy to result in revenue loss of ~20% in FY14 while the quest for LBS monetization model looks a long way off. However, AMAP's solid cash position (US$529m) and Ali investment, indicate potential to cross the chasm in the LT.” AutoNavi Holdings Ltd. closed on Thursday at $12.54.