Continue reading Yahoo! Lays Off 600 Employees

Yahoo! Lays Off 600 Employees originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 14 Dec 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Baidu.com (BIDU - option chain) shares are rising today on reports that Google (GOOG) advertisers in China have been advised to switch to its rivals, including Baidu and Sohu.com (SOHU). This is on the heels of this weekend's report that Google will shut down its Chinese search engine rather than bow to the countries strict censorship rules. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on Baidu.

BIDU opened this morning at $570.48. So far today the stock has hit a low of $563.20 and a high of $628.50. As of 12:35, BIDU is trading at $581.05 up $30.81 (5.6%). The chart for BIDU looks neutral and S&P gives BIDU a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold ranking.

Continue reading Baidu to Gain from Google's China Search Exit

Baidu to Gain from Google's China Search Exit originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Microsoft and Yahoo! Cleared to Bounce Heads off Google

Microsoft and Yahoo! Cleared to Bounce Heads off Google originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 19 Feb 2010 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Facebook Rises in Search Market

Facebook Rises in Search Market originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Closing Bell: Stock Market Snow Day! (ADBE, BIDU, HMC, S, MU, DF)

Closing Bell: Stock Market Snow Day! (ADBE, BIDU, HMC, S, MU, DF) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 10 Feb 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Yesterday was a good day for Baidu (BIDU), the Chinese Internet search portal, after some Wall Street analysts noted that the departure of Google (GOOG) from China could "benefit Baidu tremendously."

BIDU has traded well in the United States, hovering in the upper reaches of the $380 region -- but GOOG's decision to operate in China without censoring local search results after recent cyber attacks pushed BIDU as high as $470 before the stock settled into the lower $400s.

Continue reading Baidu.com Could Benefit from Google's Misfortunes

Baidu.com Could Benefit from Google's Misfortunes originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 02 Feb 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Twitter-watchers have been expecting the company to make some move toward corporate microblogging capabilities for months now. This is one of the two directions that the social media platform has on its agenda for generating revenue, and it is likely the one with the greater potential. The other, serving ads on Twitter.com, is currently constrained by the fact that nearly 70% of Twitter use occurs away from the company's website.

While all talk of corporate accounts is still shrouded in speculation, the obvious plan would be for corporate users to have more robust analytics and other marketing tools for which a premium would be paid. Among the tools being rolled out ostensibly in advance of this business model is a multi-user account model, in which several "Contributors," as Twitter is calling them, can tweet under the same umbrella.

Continue reading Twitter gets a step closer to corporate accounts

Twitter gets a step closer to corporate accounts originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 15 Dec 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Google (GOOG) may be going after real-time search, but Microsoft (MSFT) isn't following. The company said on Tuesday that it doesn't see a pressing need to integrate with social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to deliver real-time results. According to Adam Sohn, director of Bing, Microsoft's search engine, "We're focused on our customers, not the competition."

Real-time search involves taking the freshest updates from social media platforms as soon as they are posted and including them in search results. For Google, the search engine segment leader by a mile, this has been a priority. In addition to Facebook and Twitter, Google has also inked an agreement with Yahoo! (YHOO).

Continue reading Microsoft won't chase Google into real-time search

Microsoft won't chase Google into real-time search originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Unless you already have a major foothold in the search engine market - or an amazing, disruptive technology that can make the world take notice - there isn't much point in staying. Competing with Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) is hard enough, even when you're Yahoo (NASDAQ: YHOO) or Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) ... and, apparently, when you're IAC/InterActive Corp (NASDAQ: IACI). Barry Diller is ready to give up Jeeves, but only if asked nicely.

Diller's presence in the search space is Ask.com, ranked #4 behind Google, Yahoo and Microsoft's Bing. With a substantial gap between first and second, fourth barely registers at all. Ask.com has only a 2% U.S. market share, according to Hitwise, more than 60 percentage points behind the industry leader.

Continue reading Would anybody buy Jeeves? Ask might go on block

Would anybody buy Jeeves? Ask might go on block originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It's tough to take on Google (NASDAQ: GOOG). The search engine behemoth owns 65% of the U.S. search market and has a commanding brand presence. Yet, the software maker up the coast isn't known to give up easily. Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) has cut a deal with microblogging site Twitter that should give it an edge in the battle to harness data and make it easier to find. A new deal will feed all those tweets into Bing, the Microsoft search engine.

Twitter is giving Microsoft full access to its data, in a deal announced Wednesday. Bing will provide search functionality for Twitter that you won't find in Google, which seems to have been outbid for the rights to the "tweet-stream." Under the deal, Bing will be able to index and display the tweets almost immediately as they are posted.

Continue reading Microsoft now in bed with Twitter

Microsoft now in bed with Twitter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The number two search engine in the United States turned in a fantastic third quarter, far ahead of expectations. Cost-cutting, layoffs and business divestitures led to a surge in Yahoo's (NASDAQ: YHOO) profits and a 4.8% increase in share price in extended trading on Tuesday evening. Net income more than tripled to $186.1 million (13 cents per share) from the third quarter of 2008's result of $54.3 million (4 cents a share). Sales (exclusive of fees passed to partner sites) reached $1.13 billion, slightly above the $1.12 billion expected by analysts, according to a Bloomberg survey.

With the advertising market in rough shape and competition from Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) continually rising, Yahoo refocused on its core properties: the home page, messaging and mobile services. The company trimmed what it didn't need, which is why it was able to boost its earnings even with a decline in revenue. Increased ad revenue from auto manufacturers, travel companies and consumer product manufacturers also helped.

Yahoo's chief financial officer, Timothy Morse, says that the company's markets are "starting to stabilize." Of course, Yahoo itself must be doing something right: its share price is up 41% this year.

Continue reading Yahoo profit triples year-over-year

Yahoo profit triples year-over-year originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Real bargain stock #9: Google (GOOG) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 04 Oct 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Some people join wine-of-the-month clubs. There are plenty of other programs out there, too, where your credit card is hit every month, and your purchase is sent to you directly. If only such programs were available for Google (NASDAQ: GOOG). . . .

The company's CEO, Eric Schmidt, said Wednesday that Google plans to pick up a small company a month as a way to get its acquisition head back in the game. With the worst of the recession behind us, Google believes, this is a great way to get moving.

Continue reading Google's hungry, looking for a new company every month

Google's hungry, looking for a new company every month originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

After months of speculation, several media reports say that a deal to create a joint venture on search between Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) may be announced as early as today.

Details of the transaction make the much-anticipated partnership seem immensely complex, which could undermine its future. Many analysts had expected Yahoo! to get up-front cash payments for putting its search business together with Microsoft's. That will not happen. The two firms will split the revenue from ads sold on their sites. Microsoft's Bing search technology will be the platform for the venture, but Yahoo! will sell the ads.

Continue reading Complex Yahoo! deal with Microsoft finally set

Complex Yahoo! deal with Microsoft finally set originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 29 Jul 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) isn't invincible. The search and online ad giant is expected to report lukewarm growth for the second quarter today because of a brutal market for advertising and redoubled efforts by Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) to own a bit more than its meager share of the online market.

Good news would have to come in the form of a better mousetrap for growing Google's ad market and ways to keep the Redmond machine from tripping it up. Ultimately, analysts are looking to see how Google can get back to the double-digit growth that used to be a given.

Continue reading Google Q2 will be shaped by demand ... and Bing

Google Q2 will be shaped by demand ... and Bing originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 16 Jul 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Yahoo Inc (NASDAQ: YHOO) claims not to be under pressure to ink a search deal with Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT). You know what that means ...

The two distant followers in the search engine space were considering a partnership, but Microsoft's newly released Bing search engine raises questions as to how committed Microsoft would be to a deal. Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz was quick to explain, according to Reuters, that "Yahoo doesn't have to do anything with Microsoft about anything" and that it is "a damned big, important site."

The benefits of the deal are salient, mostly involving scale and increased monetization of Yahoo's search service. The second largest search company estimates that it would save up to $700 million in a year through the Microsoft partnership.

Even though Yahoo is "damned big," Bartz believes that the acquisition of smaller companies that could be folded easily would be a good use of the company's cash.

Yahoo! is damned big and important, doesn't need Microsoft Deal originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Goldman Sachs has upped its share price estimate on Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) to $486, an increase of 17%. The analysts cite both search query growth and improvements in emerging markets coverage as the reasons for giving a nod to the dominant player in the online search business. The higher estimate implies that Google still has plenty of room to grow, which leaves plenty of upside for investors.

On a per-share basis, Goldman Sachs pushed its earnings forecast for the search giant 2% higher for this year - to $21.30. Per-share earnings estimates for 2010 were increased to by 8% to $23.36, and the 2011 estimate is now $27.02 (up 12%).

Goldman sees Google going higher originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 03 Jun 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analysts at Pali Research today started coverage of Baidu.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) with a Sell rating and a $90 price target. The brokerage firm cited "short- to mid-term uncertainties," which it says outweigh current opportunities for the Chinese Internet-search titan.

Chief among those uncertainties is Baidu.com's "controversial" business model. The search engine has recently come under fire for hosting search listings paid for by unlicensed medical and pharmaceutical concerns. Last week, the company added to Wall Street's concerns by slashing its fourth-quarter revenue outlook.

Pali Research joins the majority of analysts with its downbeat opinion of Baidu.com. Zacks reports three Holds, one Sell, and one Strong Sell, compared to just two Buy or better ratings. While the shares have already shed 70.8% year-to-date, Pali's $90 price target suggests that the brokerage firm expects additional downside. This estimate represents a discount of 21.1% to the stock's closing price on Friday.

Despite BIDU's negative price action, option players remain relentlessly bullish on the shares. During the past 50 days, traders on the International Securities Exchange (ISE) and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) have consistently purchased more calls than puts on this Internet issue.

With the shares up more than 1% in early trading today, the bullish case for BIDU looks curiously compelling. However, considering the company's cloudy fundamental outlook, it's unclear just how long the shares can rely on round-number support at $110 before succumbing to the effects of gravity once again.

Elizabeth Harrow is an analyst and financial writer in the research department at Schaeffer's Investment Research. She is featured in the video series Schaeffer's Daily Q&A on SchaeffersResearch.com.

Baidu.com started at Sell, but option players remain bullish originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 15 Dec 2008 12:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Google's (GOOG) shares continue to be stuck below $500 where they have been since late February. Part of the reason for the fall is that comScore data showed that the number of people who clicked on ads at the big search engine was weak in January.

It looks like the stock will drop again as "click rates" for Google ads rose only 3% in February when compared with the figures for the same month last year. According to MarketWatch: "Google reported 25% growth in paid clicks in its fiscal fourth quarter ended in December. But comScore data released last month showed flat growth in Google's paid clicks in January." Now, investors can ponder another piece of bad news.

The easy answer to the Google data is that a recession is slowing down advertising activity everywhere. Google carries millions of ads in its AdSense program, so it would make sense that it should suffer some fallout.

But, the answer may be more troubling than that. Readers of Google's search pages may be discovering that the text ads next to the listings are from marketers trying to take advantage of people looking for information by clogging pages with related messages. As more people understand the system of targeting based on search results, fewer are willing to be sucked in by companies trying to reach them due to their behavior.

If the Google system of matching ads to search results is putting its customers off, that would be worse news than the effects of a recession.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Google's (GOOG) ad numbers weak again originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 27 Mar 2008 08:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

China's Baidu.com doubles profit, but future guidance causes jitters originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 26 Oct 2007 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.