Tag Archives: apple

Dow 30 Stock Roundup: Apple, Microsoft Disappoint; GE, DuPont Impress

The Dow suffered losses over the week primarily due to a continual decline in Apple’s shares while oil prices remained volatile. The index declined on Monday following a decline in oil prices and weak earnings results and guidance. The

Baidu Zooms On ‘Solid’ Search Growth, ‘Very Strong’ Revenue Outlook

Baidu ( BIDU ) stock shot up Friday after China’s Internet search leader gave a Q2 outlook above consensus late Thursday while posting Q1 earnings and revenue that beat and met, respectively, Wall Street views. Baidu posted “solid results on core search” along with “very strong” revenue guidance for Q2, ITG Investment Research analyst Henry Guo told IBD via email Friday. China’s slowing economic growth “has no impact on advertisers spending,” Guo said. “Local merchants continue to embrace search advertising as mobile helps Baidu penetrate into local, expanding its advertiser base.” Brean Capital on Friday upgraded Baidu stock to buy from hold. Baidu, often referred to as China’s Google, is investing heavily in services ranging from online payments to online-to-offline transactions including food delivery. And, like Alphabet ( GOOGL )-owned Google, Baidu is spending on research and development of driverless cars. Baidu stock was up 6.5% in midday trading in the stock market today , near 198, its highest level since mid-December. Baidu stock has gained 96% since hitting a nearly three-year low of 100 in late August, but shares have fallen 10% over the past 12 months. Baidu revenue rose 31% year over year in local currency to RMB 15.821 billion ($2.454 billion). That’s above the $2.44 billion that Factset had expected and fell in line with the RMB 15.83 billion analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were looking for. Baidu said that its Q1 revenue excluded Chinese online travel agency Qunar Cayman Islands. In October, Baidu-backed Qunar announced a share swap with Ctrip.com ( CTRP ), another leading Chinese online travel agency. Baidu now owns 3% of Qunar. Baidu also owns 25% of Ctrip, which owns 45% of Qunar. Mobile revenue represented 60% of total revenue in Q1, up from 50% in Q1 2015, Baidu said. Baidu reported EPS ex items of RMB 6.80 ($1.05), down 12% year over year. Still, that’s above the RMB 5.96 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected. For Q2, Baidu guided revenue ranging from RMB 20.110 billion ($3.12 billion) to RMB 20.580 billion ($3.19 billion), representing an increase of 21% to 24% year-over-year in local currency. On an apples-to-apples basis, excluding Qunar from Baidu’s financials, Baidu said that the guidance represents a 28%-31% year-over-year increase in RMB.

Pandora Q1 Tops Views; ‘Ticketfly’ Growing, On-Demand Platform Near

Pandora Media ( P ) stock jumped on growth in listening hours among music streaming app users and a smaller-than-expected loss amid stiff competition from Apple ( AAPL ) Music and others. On Pandora’s Q1 earnings conference call late Thursday, management reported progress developing an on-demand music platform and integrating concert ticketing services into its app. “Ticketfly” revenue of $22.3 million topped analysts’ estimate of $17 million. Pandora expects to launch an on-demand service by year-end. Marketing expenses are rising as the company diversifies. “Pandora’s user base growth continues to languish (likely due to competition from Spotify and Apple Music),” said Mark Mahaney, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, in a research report. “Pandora is undergoing a dramatic growth investment phase to protect and grow its core ad-supported music streaming business while spending $120 million to develop an on-demand music service — a tough challenge.” Dan Salmon, analyst at BMO Capital Markets, is also cautious. “Pandora believes it can generate better margins than existing on-demand offerings through ‘free’ customer acquisition from its user base, and will aim to counter the cannibalization dynamic by targeting lower monetizing users,” he wrote in a report. Pandora said that its Q1 revenue rose 29% year over year to $297 million, topping Wall Street views of $286 million in sales. The company reported a loss of 20 cents per share minus items, vs. expectations of a 31-cent per-share loss. Pandora raised its full year 2016 revenue and EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) guidance each by $10 million. Pandora stock was near 10, up 6% in afternoon trading on the stock market today , near 10. With Friday’s gain, Pandora’s stock is still down 23% in 2016. Pandora has a low IBD Composite Rating of 27 out of a possible 99. The company said that total listening hours for its music streaming service rose 4%, to 5.52 billion. “We believe there is more value in Pandora’s roughly 80 million monthly active listeners than the market currently rewards shareholders,” William Blair analyst Ralph Schackart said in a research note, “while acknowledging the stalled-out user growth concern.”