Wall Street Analysts Downgrade Baidu Amid Disappointing Earnings; Stock Tumbles

Baidu Inc BIDU, a Chinese-language internet search provider, reported a mixed earnings report on Monday, after the close; Baidu reported revenues of $2.67 billion, a 38.3 percent year-over-year sales growth, and an earnings per share of $1.81, below the expected $1.88 per share. The search company also highlighted that its monthly active users for Q2 were 629 million, representing a growth of 24 percent year-over-year.

Baidu revealed guidance for the third quarter; the company expects revenue for Q3 in the range of $2.93-$3 billion, slightly down from analyst expectations of $3.03 billion. Shares of the stock dwindled a bit north of 4 percent on Monday, and after reporting earnings after the close of the markets, shares have sunk nearly 12 percent in the pre-market session on Tuesday.

Wall Street analysts covered the stock, here is what they had to say early Tuesday:
KeyBanc: (Associated with Pacific Crest): Analysts downgrade the stock from Overweight rating down to Sector Weight. Analyst Cheng Cheng specified that spending could rise and monetization could be low for Baidu’s future.
Brean Capital: Analysts downgrade Baidu from a Buy rating down to a Hold rating. Analyst Fawne Jiang expressed uncertainties about earnings ahead.

SUMMARY: 2 downgrades; 1 Sector Weight, 1 Hold rating.