BIDU(09888) 国信证券·2025-02-22 09:35Investment Rating - The investment rating for Baidu Group is "Outperform the Market" [5] Core Insights - Baidu Group's total revenue for Q4 2024 was 341 billion yuan, a slight decrease of 2% year-on-year, with adjusted net profit reaching 67 billion yuan, down 13% year-on-year [1][7] - The core advertising revenue declined by 7%, while the AI-driven cloud business showed significant growth, with a 26% increase in revenue [2][17] - The company is focusing on AI technology to enhance search advertising and cloud services, with expectations of adjusted net profits of 272 billion yuan in 2025 and 301 billion yuan in 2026 [21] Financial Performance Summary - For Q4 2024, Baidu's core revenue remained stable year-on-year, while iQIYI's revenue fell by 14% [12] - The online marketing revenue for Q4 2024 was 179 billion yuan, down 7% year-on-year, primarily due to economic pressures on small and medium enterprises [14] - The adjusted net profit margin for Baidu's core business was 24% in Q4 2024, with operating expenses remaining stable at 122 billion yuan [7][14] Business Segment Analysis - The non-marketing revenue for Baidu's core business reached 98 billion yuan in Q4 2024, a 43% increase, driven by the intelligent cloud business [17] - The AI cloud business revenue was 71 billion yuan, reflecting a 26% year-on-year growth, with significant increases in API call volumes [2][17] - Apollo Go achieved 100% fully autonomous driving operations in China, providing over 1.1 million rides in Q4 2024, a 36% increase year-on-year [18]