Benchmark Reaffirms “Hold” Rating for iQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ)

iQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ)‘s stock had its “hold” rating restated by analysts at Benchmark in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on IQ. Nomura Securities upgraded shares of iQIYI to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut iQIYI from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $2.80 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, iQIYI currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $3.15.

iQIYI Trading Down 3.5 %

Shares of IQ opened at $1.95 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.53. iQIYI has a 1 year low of $1.92 and a 1 year high of $5.80. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $2.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3.23.

iQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.06 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. iQIYI had a return on equity of 13.43% and a net margin of 4.69%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.05 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that iQIYI will post 0.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of IQ. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of iQIYI by 23.1% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 101,928 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 19,100 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its position in iQIYI by 62.5% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 130,248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $554,000 after buying an additional 50,078 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its stake in iQIYI by 32.9% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 466,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,973,000 after acquiring an additional 115,400 shares in the last quarter. Natixis purchased a new position in shares of iQIYI during the first quarter worth approximately $536,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of iQIYI by 206.5% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,137,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,812,000 after acquiring an additional 766,436 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.69% of the company’s stock.

iQIYI Company Profile

iQIYI, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides online entertainment video services in the People's Republic of China. It offers various products and services, including online video, online games, online literature, animations, and other products. The company operates a platform that provides a collection of internet video content, such as professionally produced content licensed from professional content providers and self-produced content.