The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) Upgraded by HSBC to “Strong-Buy” Rating

HSBC upgraded shares of The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $1,048.00 to $1,245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. CICC Research boosted their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $825.00 to $980.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Monday, April 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $1,195.00 to $1,325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut The Goldman Sachs Group from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,062.86.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

Shares of GS opened at $1,062.20 on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group has a 12 month low of $705.55 and a 12 month high of $1,153.99. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,055.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $956.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17. The company has a market cap of $313.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.30.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The investment management company reported $20.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $14.47 by $6.51. The business had revenue of $20.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.22 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 19.16% and a net margin of 15.53%.The Goldman Sachs Group’s revenue was up 39.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $10.91 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that The Goldman Sachs Group will post 68.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $5.00 per share. This represents a $20.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. This is a positive change from The Goldman Sachs Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $4.50. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is 30.87%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Goldman Sachs Group news, CFO Denis P. Coleman sold 6,857 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $973.55, for a total value of $6,675,632.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 31,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,248,198.50. This represents a 18.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Goldman Sachs Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 4th quarter worth about $2,515,830,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 1,657.7% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,596,487 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $2,282,312,000 after purchasing an additional 2,448,767 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,024,921,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 8.0% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,455,011 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $5,460,875,000 after purchasing an additional 476,977 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 428.4% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 556,254 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $488,947,000 after purchasing an additional 450,984 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.21% of the company’s stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting The Goldman Sachs Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs’ latest quarterly results were substantially stronger than expected, with earnings per share of $20.98 versus a $14.47 consensus estimate and revenue of $20.34 billion, up 39.4% year over year. The results reinforce the outlook for investment banking, trading and asset-management revenue.
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America reportedly believes Goldman Sachs shares have further upside after doubling from their “Liberation Day” lows, supporting continued investor confidence in the firm’s earnings recovery and business mix. Goldman Sachs stock doubles from Liberation Day lows
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs is serving as a joint book-running manager on Braveheart Bio’s upsized $382.5 million IPO and previously helped lead Attovia Therapeutics’ $289 million offering. A healthy IPO pipeline and improving equity issuance activity can boost Goldman’s underwriting fees. Braveheart Bio Prices Upsized IPO
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to highlight Goldman’s momentum, including strong trading, mergers and acquisitions, blockbuster IPO activity and the potential for artificial intelligence to improve productivity and expand fee-based revenue. Goldman’s AI Strategy

About The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc is a global investment banking and financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1869 as a commercial paper business, the company has grown into a diversified financial institution that provides a broad range of services to corporations, financial institutions, governments and individuals. The firm is led by Chief Executive Officer David M. Solomon and operates across major financial centers worldwide.

Goldman Sachs’ core businesses include investment banking, global markets, asset and wealth management, and consumer banking.