Baidu’s (BIDU) AI-powered cloud growth in the latest results has caught Wall Street’s attention. Despite a smaller-than-expected revenue decline in Q4, multiple analysts reaffirmed their Buy ratings, signaling confidence in Baidu’s future profitability. Following the results, BIDU stock fell over 7% on Tuesday due to its advertising business concerns. However, its AI cloud division helped cushion losses, with Q4 revenue growth accelerating 26% year-over-year.
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Why Analysts Can’t Stop Talking About Baidu Stock
Analyst Thomas Chong at Jefferies highlighted Baidu’s stronger-than-expected cloud growth, reaffirming a Buy rating with a $128 price target. He forecasts a 42% upside from current levels. Chong highlighted management’s focus on strong user engagement and an improved experience, driving higher daily search queries. He also pointed out that the company sees strong potential in Baidu Agent and expects advertising revenue to recover after bottoming out.
Meanwhile, Citi analyst Alicia Yap believes the strong cloud growth outlook signals a positive trajectory for Baidu’s profitability, backed by better-than-expected operating and net income results. Yap also reiterated her Buy rating on BIDU stock, predicting a 54% upside.
Mizuho and DBS Raise Price Targets on BIDU
Mizuho’s five-star-rated analyst James Lee raised the BIDU stock price target to $105 from $95, maintaining a Buy rating after its Q4 report. He highlighted 26% cloud revenue growth, with AI contributing a double-digit percentage. Moreover, Lee noted that Baidu’s strong cloud profitability and cost control boosted its core operating income. Looking ahead, Mizuho expects investor sentiment to improve driven by policy support for the macro economy and artificial intelligence (AI).
Similarly, DBS raised its price target for Baidu from $79 to $94, driven by a higher cloud business multiple and growing demand with DeepSeek integration. However, DBS maintained a Hold rating on BIDU stock due to short-term weakness in its advertising business.
Is Baidu Stock a Good Buy Now?
According to TipRanks, BIDU stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on nine Buys and six Holds assigned in the last three months. At $107.54, the Baidu average share price target implies a 27.24% upside potential.
Year-to-date, BIDU stock has gained 7%.
