Contrasting Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) and KLDiscovery (OTCMKTS:KLDI)

Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) and KLDiscovery (OTCMKTS:KLDI) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, earnings, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Baidu and KLDiscovery”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Baidu	$134.84 billion	0.25	$2.86 billion	$8.17	11.93
KLDiscovery	$345.80 million	0.00	-$34.81 million	($1.56)	-0.01

Baidu has higher revenue and earnings than KLDiscovery. KLDiscovery is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Baidu, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Baidu has a beta of 0.46, suggesting that its stock price is 54% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, KLDiscovery has a beta of -0.68, suggesting that its stock price is 168% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

20.4% of KLDiscovery shares are owned by institutional investors. 16.7% of Baidu shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 31.6% of KLDiscovery shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Baidu and KLDiscovery’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Baidu	15.82%	9.05%	5.71%
KLDiscovery	-20.91%	N/A	-9.45%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Baidu and KLDiscovery, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Baidu	0	10	6	0	2.38
KLDiscovery	0	0	0	0	0.00

Baidu presently has a consensus price target of $112.08, indicating a potential upside of 14.98%. Given Baidu’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Baidu is more favorable than KLDiscovery.

Summary

Baidu beats KLDiscovery on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Baidu

Baidu, Inc. engages in the provision of internet search services in China. It operates through two segments: Baidu Core and iQIYI. The company offers Baidu App to access search, feed, and other services using mobile devices; Baidu Search to access its search and other services; Baidu Feed that provides users with personalized timeline based on their demographics and interests; Baidu Health that helps users to find the doctor and hospital for healthcare needs; and Haokan, a short video app. It also provides Baidu Knows, an online community where users can ask questions to other users; Baidu Wiki; Baidu Experience; Baidu Post; ERNIE Bot, conversational AI bot; Baidu Wenku; Baidu Maps, a voice-enabled mobile app that provides travel-related services; Baidu Drive; Baijiahao; and DuerOS, a smart assistant platform. In addition, it offers online marketing services, which include pay for performance, an auction-based services that allow customers to bid for priority placement of paid sponsored links and reach users who search for information related to their products or services; other marketing services that include display-based marketing services and other online marketing services based on performance criteria other than cost per click; mobile ecosystem, a portfolio of apps, including Baidu App, Haokan, and Baidu Post; various cloud services and solutions, such as platform as a service, software as a service, and infrastructure as a service; self-driving services, including maps, automated valet parking, navigation pilot, electric vehicles, and robotaxi fleets, as well as Xiaodu smart devices. Further, the company provides iQIYI, an online entertainment service, including original and licensed content; other video content and membership; and online advertising services. It has strategic partnership with Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. The company was formerly known as Baidu.com, Inc. Baidu, Inc. was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Beijing, China.

About KLDiscovery

KLDiscovery Inc. provides eDiscovery, information governance, and data recovery solutions to corporations, law firms, insurance companies, and individuals worldwide. The company offers Nebula, an end-to-end eDiscovery solution that facilitates smarter ways to cull, process, review, and manage documents in an intuitive interface; Client Portal for consolidated visualizations and reporting for portfolio intelligence; KLD Processing, a proprietary processing application; ReadySuite to perform extensive QC on a production, normalize inbound submissions, or spot check the work of a colleague or supplier; Relativity for relativity enhancements and state-of-the-art HIVE infrastructure; Nebula Processing to process data with a higher degree of quality; and Nebula AI, a technology assisted review tool combined with a deep bench of experts, as well as managed services, remote document review, and managed document review services. It also provides computer forensics, ransomware data recovery, remote collection manager, data recovery, and data collection services. In addition, the company offers Nebula Archive, an advanced archiving solution for modern enterprise data management needs at scale; Nebula Intelligent Archive, a digital communications compliance platform with machine learning and analytics; and Office 365 Migration and Management, as well as information governance and advisory services. Further, it provides Ontrack EasyRecovery that allows clients to perform precise file recovery of data lost through deletion, reformatting, and various other data loss scenarios; Ontrack PowerControls, a granular restore software product; email extraction, tape solutions, and data destruction solutions; and professional services. KLDiscovery Inc. was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.