Baidu Inc (BIDU-SW) shares plummeted 5.43% in intraday trading on Wednesday, following the release of the company's fourth-quarter 2024 earnings results. The stock's decline was primarily driven by concerns over the slowdown in Baidu's core online marketing business.
Although Baidu reported better-than-expected earnings per share of CNY2.41 for the quarter, beating analysts' estimates of CNY2.05, its revenue growth was slightly negative at -2.4% year-over-year. The company's online marketing business, which contributes a major portion of its revenue, experienced a 7% decline from the previous year to CNY17.9 billion ($2.46 billion), excluding its streaming service iQIYI.
Junjie He, interim CFO of Baidu, acknowledged the softness in the online marketing business but highlighted the robust momentum in the company's AI Cloud business, with fourth-quarter revenue growth accelerating to 26% year-over-year, offsetting some of the weakness in the core advertising segment.
Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.