BIDU-W shares jumped more than 5% in Hong Kong trading, with the stock last up 4.21% at HK$95.35 and turnover reaching HK$767 million.
The surge follows an announcement by Baidu (09888, BIDU.US) confirming that its previously declared voluntary conversion of its secondary listing status to primary listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange took effect on September 1, making the company now dual-primary listed on both the HKEX and the Nasdaq Global Select Market.
Chief Financial Officer He Haijian said in an interview with Bloomberg that Baidu is likely to see fresh capital inflows soon, possibly as early as next week. Drawing on the views of brokers and analysts, he estimated that a company of Baidu's market size could attract incremental capital inflows of 10%-15%.
From an investment banking valuation perspective, Zou Chengfeng, Senior Vice President at Dongxing Securities' Investment Banking Division, noted that a key development following the dual primary listing is the potential for AI assets to receive more independent pricing. Several market institutions have already adopted a sum-of-the-parts valuation approach for Baidu. When Kunlun Chip, Intelligent Cloud, and Apollo Go are valued separately, and accounting for the growth potential of the AI business, certain estimates suggest Baidu's potential upside could approach three times its current valuation, making the valuation framework transition one to watch closely.
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