Nomura Has Lowered Expectations for NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES) Stock Price

NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES) had its target price decreased by analysts at Nomura from $160.00 to $155.00 in a report released on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the technology company’s stock. Nomura’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 28.51% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of NetEase in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of NetEase in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen lowered NetEase from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $155.00 target price on shares of NetEase in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of NetEase from $135.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, NetEase has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.67.

NetEase Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of NTES opened at $120.61 on Friday. NetEase has a 12-month low of $88.54 and a 12-month high of $159.55. The stock has a market cap of $76.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.43, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a 50-day moving average of $134.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $139.10.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NetEase

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of NetEase by 19.3% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 457 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management boosted its holdings in NetEase by 29.2% in the third quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 332 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Hardy Reed LLC grew its position in NetEase by 0.9% during the third quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 8,538 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,298,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. increased its stake in NetEase by 3.3% during the second quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 2,527 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $332,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Research LLC raised its holdings in shares of NetEase by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Main Street Research LLC now owns 4,085 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

Key NetEase News

Here are the key news stories impacting NetEase this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Big dividend hike: NetEase declared a quarterly dividend of $1.16 (record date Mar 16, pay Mar 27), a 103.5% increase from the prior payout and ~3.9% yield — an income boost that can attract yield-seeking investors and support the share price. Zacks: Q4 Earnings & Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Broker and analyst commentary noting the Q4 weakness may be one-off and highlighting upside potential — these narratives can limit downside and attract buying from longer‑term/contrarian investors. Seeking Alpha: Q4 Underperformance Is A One-Off Seeking Alpha: Upside Brewing
• Neutral Sentiment: Underlying revenue growth and strategic pushes (game slate, AI initiatives, rising cash) cited in earnings commentary — these are constructive for medium-term fundamentals but haven’t yet offset margin/earnings headwinds. Yahoo Finance: Q4 Highlights
• Neutral Sentiment: Nomura trimmed its price target to $155 (from $160) but kept a Buy rating — a modestly negative tweak in PT but still signals conviction in upside, so the net effect is neutral-to-slightly supportive. MarketScreener: Nomura PT
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 profit miss and weaker margins: NetEase reported a significant drop in Q4 profit (reported as ~24–30% decline across coverage) and missed some estimates, which triggered selling pressure after the print. Yicai Global: Stock Falls After Profit Decline
• Negative Sentiment: Barclays cut its price target to $132 and moved to an Equal Weight rating — another analyst downgrade that can weigh on sentiment and limit near-term upside. The Fly / Benzinga: Barclays PT Cut

About NetEase

NetEase, Inc (NASDAQ: NTES) is a Chinese technology company headquartered in Hangzhou that develops and operates Internet services and products. Founded in 1997 by William Ding (Ding Lei), the company has grown from an early web portal and e-mail provider into a diversified online services group. William Ding has served as the company’s founder and long-time leader, guiding its expansion into games, digital content and consumer services.

The company’s primary business is interactive entertainment: NetEase Games designs, develops and publishes PC and mobile games for domestic and international audiences, offering a mix of self-developed franchises and titles published under licensing and strategic partnerships.