Will Baidu Stock Finally Bounce Back in 2020?

It remains to be seen when Baidu (NASDAQ: BIDU) will get back on the growth track, and with the shares trading lower for the third year in a row it's easy to wax nostalgic about the glory days. However, with shares of China's leading search engine operator moving sharply higher after posting a better-than-expected earnings report on Monday night one has to wonder if the former dot-com darling is finally ready to start winning again.

Baidu's first quarter may not seem solid at first glance. Total revenue declined 7% in the first quarter, with Baidu Core -- its flagship search, feed, and AI businesses -- checking in with a 13% slide. The good news is that investors were bracing for worse. Given the early and thorough impact of COVID-19 in China, Baidu's own guidance for the period was calling for a 5% to 13% year-over-year slide in total revenue with a 10% to 18% plunge in Baidu Core. Baidu landed at the kinder end of the midpoint of both of those ranges, and that was with the initial outlook in late February. The global situation with the pandemic naturally got even worse in the third and final month of the quarter. Baidu's $3.18 billion in revenue for the quarter was comfortably ahead of the $3.1 billion analysts were targeting.

Image source: Baidu.