Baidu Releases Earnings (BIDU)

Chinese search giant Baidu

has released its quarterly earnings. The company reported net income of RMB847.4 million ($123.5 million) which was a 118.5% increase compared to last year's corresponding quarter. Earnings per share were $0.35. Wall Street analysts had anticipated the company would report EPS of $0.31. Revenues came in at RMB1.914 billion ($282.3 million), which was a 74.4% increase over the second quarter of 2009. Analysts' consensus revenue estimates going into this report were set at $276.73 million. In the after hours trading session, BIDU shares have gained 0.71% to $73.83. "Baidu's record top and bottom line results reflect the healthy growth of our customer base and continued improvements in monetization efficiency," said Robin Li, Baidu's chairman and chief executive officer. "This quarter's strong performance also underscores the vast Internet market opportunities for us and the growing appreciation for search engine marketing in China." Mr. Li added, "Baidu continues to focus on user experience and has many initiatives on this front to ensure Baidu remains at the center of China's Internet ecosystem." Jennifer Li, Baidu's chief financial officer, commented, "Effective execution resulted in impressive revenue growth and healthy margin improvements for second quarter 2010. Over the next quarters, we will continue to aggressively invest in R&D, sales and infrastructure to drive innovation, enhance monetization and support our growth."