Baidu’s Bumpy Ride: Portfolio Manager’s Diary 📉

by

Wednesday’s market drama: Baidu (BIDU) served the kind of disappointment usually reserved for discovering your “luxury” skincare serum is just water in a fancy bottle. Shares dipped 3% while the S&P 500 snoozed along at -0.2%. Classic.

The Numbers That Made Me Spill My Chardonnay

Q2 revenue: ¥32.7 billion ($4.55B). That’s a 4% year-over-year decline, slightly below analysts’ ¥32.9B guesswork. Let’s be honest – we’ve all been there. Remember when I swore I’d hold Tesla through the crypto crash? Shudders.

Non-GAAP net income? Down 35% to ¥4.8B ($668M). But here’s the twist: per ADS profits beat estimates at ¥13.58 vs. expected ¥13.33. Small mercies, like finding a single M&M in your empty candy jar.

Loading widget...

AI: The Emperor’s New Cloud?

Management insists AI Cloud is their “it” accessory: “robust growth” powered by “full-stack capabilities”. Cute. Like when I bought a Peloton bike thinking it would magically transform my Netflix-watching stamina into marathon prowess. Let’s revisit this in Q4, shall we?

Mobility Dreams vs. Market Realities

Apollo Go robotaxis: apparently they’re “leading in left- and right-hand drive markets”. Adorable. Reminds me of my first attempt at parallel parking – lots of enthusiasm, questionable execution. But hey, at least they’re not trying to monetize my cat’s Instagram like some desperate content creators.

Portfolio Manager’s Checklist Today:

  • Units of Cryptocurrency Lost: 12
  • Hours Spent Analyzing BIDU’s AI Strategy: 3.5 (plus wine)
  • Number of Times I Whispered “Value Investing” Into Mirror: 7

    • Still holding my nose and buying the dip? Or is this the financial equivalent of texting your ex at 2am? 🚗

    Read More

    2025-08-21 01:33