The poor economic conditions are bringing thrift shop stocks back in vogue. eBay (EBAY), which helps people auction new and used goods, gained 7.88% on Feb. 28. Its 8% dividend hike, to 27 cents a share, is most welcome. Markets are less likely to sell shares in mature technology firms that pay a dividend.
Chinese tech firm Baidu (BIDU) will attempt to regain the 8.05% loss from yesterday. The firm reported a $3.08 EPADS non-GAPP. Although revenue growth of 6% exceeded some analyst expectations, Baidu needs to demonstrate profit potential in its AI products. For example, ERNIE and ERNIE Bot are the foundation of strengthening its core business. Markets do not view Baidu’s AI as a front-runner to Microsoft’s (MSFT) investment in ChatGPT. The Baidu AI model cannot thrive so long as the government restricts the machine from processing data outside of China.
Baidu’s sell-off on Thursday hurt Alibaba (BABA), Tencent (TCEHY), and JD.com Inc. (JD). These widely-traded stocks risk resuming their downtrend amid Baidu’s weak share price.
Among the other most actively traded stocks today are penny stocks that investors should avoid. Nikola (NKLA), SoundHound AI (SOUN), Canoo (GOEV), and Beyond Meat (BYND) have unattractive businesses.