The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: ReneSola, Baidu, SouFun Holdings, Moody's and Jiayuan.com International

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Jun 06, 2014, 09:30 ET

CHICAGO, June 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include the ReneSola Ltd. (NYSE:SOL-Free Report), Baidu, Inc. (Nasdaq:BIDU-Free Report), SouFun Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:SFUN-Free Report), Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO-Free Report) and Jiayuan.com International Ltd. (Nasdaq:DATE-Free Report).

Today, Zacks is promoting its ''Buy'' stock recommendations. Get #1Stock of the Day pick for free.

Here are highlights from Thursday's Analyst Blog:

China Stock Roundup

Stocks had a dismal week following lingering weakness in the property markets. The holiday shortened week began on a dismal note with markets moving downwards on Tuesday following losses by property and consumer staples shares.

Stocks lost again on Wednesday following concerns that government measures to boost economic growth would be unable to cure the slump in the property markets. Ultimately, indexes gained today, though trading volumes declined substantially. ReneSola Ltd. (NYSE:SOL-Free Report) reported losses during first quarter 2014 while Baidu, Inc. (Nasdaq:BIDU-Free Report) said it expects to raise $1 billion from dollar denominated bonds.

Last Week's Developments

The benchmark index ended the session on Friday nearly unchanged. A surge in nickel shares and gains in auto shares was offset by losses made by property companies. Nickel shares chalked up gains following speculation that prices would rise further following media reports of a shortage next year. The Shanghai Composite Index declined 0.1% while the CSI 300 gained 0.1%. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index moved up 0.6%.

According to a report in the China Securities Journal, the government was finalising measures which would open up the economy to a greater degree. The Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.6% in May while the CSI 300 lost 0.1%. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index gained 4.8% over the month, experiencing its highest monthly gains since September last year.

Markets and the Economy This Week

Markets on the mainland and Hong Kong were closed on Monday. The HSBC PMI Index increased from 48.1 in April to 49.4 in May. This is the index's highest level in four months indicating that the economy was firming up despite job losses and weakness in the property market.The Bloomberg China-US Equity Index gained 0.5%.

Stocks declined on Tuesday with the benchmark index erasing gains made during the day's during the last minutes of trading. Consumer staple and property companies took losses. According to SouFun Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:SFUN-Free Report), China's home prices declined in May for the first time in two years. The Shanghai Stock Exchange Property Index lost 0.7%, falling to its lowest level since May 22.

The Shanghai Composite Index declined by less than 0.1% while the CSI 300 lost 0.3%. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index gained 0.8%. Analysts were of the view that the increase in the HSBC PMI and the proposal to reduce reserve requirements would not be able to reduce concerns of an economic slowdown.

The Shanghai Composite Index moved down 0.7% on Wednesday, taking losses for the fourth successive day. The decline was caused by fears that steps being taken by the government to boost economic growth would not be able to cure the slump in the property market.

Property stocks and shares of companies with linkages to home purchase also declined. The Shanghai Property Index lost 1.1%, increasing its yearly losses to 5.6%. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index lost 0.5%. Rare earth companies also moved lower,

Stocks moved higher today as volatility in Chinese stocks declined to an all time low. A decline in equity investment reflected by lower trading volumes has led to the benchmark index's 50 day volatility fall to 12.5, the lowest level since a decade. In fact, the benchmark index snapped the 12th consecutive day of changes within a range of 1% at the close.

The Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.8% while the CSI 300 increased 1.1%. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index moved up 0.5%. Meanwhile, the HSBC Services PMI declined from 51.4 in April to 50.7 in May.

Stocks in the News

ReneSola Ltd. reported a loss per American Depositary Share (ADS) of 14 cents in the first quarter of 2014, wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 5 cents per ADS. However, loss in the reported quarter was narrower than the year-ago loss of 45 cents per ADS. The year-over-year improvement was driven by strong shipments to Japan.

ReneSola's net revenues of $415.0 million advanced 46.0% from $284.2 million in the prior-year quarter but decreased 5.4% from $438.8 million in the sequentially preceding quarter. The reported figure fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $465.0 million by 10.8%.

The year-over-year improvement in sales was driven mainly by higher shipment to Japan at a much higher price. In addition, the company's continuous effort to convert more of its silicon wafers into solar photovoltaic (PV) modules brought considerable sales growth.

Operating loss during the quarter was $8.7 million as compared to an operating income of $8.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2013. However, the quarterly loss was much narrower than the year-ago loss of $33.4 million.

Baidu, Inc. has said that it expects to raise $1 billion from the sale of U.S. dollar-denominated bonds. At 2.75%, the bond coupon has been set 1.25 percentage points higher than U.S. five year Treasury Bonds.

The benchmark includes only USD-denominated debt that is due to mature in less than five years. The coupon being offered is lower than the 3.25% rate for the company's $1 billion bond issue in August 2013.

Baidu has stated that the net proceeds would be used for general corporate purposes. Goldman Sachs (Asia) L.L.C. and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC will act as joint book-running managers for the offering.

Moody's Investor Services – the credit rating agency of Moody's Corporation (NYSE:MCO-Free Report) – assigned an "A3" rating to the proposed notes. The A3 rating carries a stable outlook. Moody's anticipates sustainable growth in Baidu's user traffic and online advertising services in the growing Chinese market.

Jiayuan.com International Ltd. (Nasdaq:DATE-Free Report) posted first quarter 2014 loss per share of $0.08, lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of loss per share of $0.12. The company reported revenues of $21.6 million for the quarter. Jiayuan.com is a Chinese online dating portal.

Shares of the company gained 2.12% on Tuesday. The company also released its outlook for second quarter 2014. Jiayuan expects net revenue within RMB145 million to RMB147 million during this period.

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