AIA Group Ltd Buys 3,360 Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS)

Key Points

• AIA Group Ltd increased its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 42.7%, holding 11,223 shares valued at approximately $6.13 million at the end of the last reporting period.
• Goldman Sachs announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $3.00 to $4.00, representing a 2.2% yield and a total annual payout of $16.00.
• Analysts have set a consensus target price of $660.00 for Goldman Sachs, with recent upgrades in price targets, reflecting overall positive sentiment towards the stock.

AIA Group Ltd increased its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) by 42.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,223 shares of the investment management company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,360 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $6,131,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 63,864.7% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,976,684 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $2,172,423,000 after buying an additional 3,970,467 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,292,679 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $1,885,454,000 after buying an additional 428,502 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the first quarter valued at about $1,766,238,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,126,762 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $1,217,844,000 after buying an additional 20,322 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,963,836 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $1,124,532,000 after buying an additional 256,204 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.21% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on GS shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $550.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $760.00 to $720.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. HSBC restated a "reduce" rating and issued a $627.00 price objective (up previously from $558.00) on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Citizens Jmp restated a "market perform" rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Monday, July 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $660.00.

Insider Activity at The Goldman Sachs Group

In related news, EVP John F.W. Rogers sold 6,008 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $717.39, for a total transaction of $4,310,079.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 65,761 shares in the company, valued at $47,176,283.79. This represents a 8.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Denis P. Coleman sold 7,463 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.40, for a total transaction of $5,406,197.20. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 18,594 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,469,493.60. This trade represents a 28.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,079 shares of company stock worth $14,423,221 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE GS traded up $2.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $745.51. The stock had a trading volume of 1,862,509 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,992,649. The business's 50 day moving average is $689.63 and its 200-day moving average is $616.41. The company has a market cap of $225.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.43, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.38. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $439.38 and a 52 week high of $748.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The investment management company reported $10.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.82 by $1.09. The firm had revenue of $14.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.53 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 14.32%. The business's revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $8.62 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 EPS for the current year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a dividend of $4.00 per share. This represents a $16.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. This is a positive change from The Goldman Sachs Group's previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group's payout ratio is currently 26.44%.

About The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc, a financial institution, provides a range of financial services for corporations, financial institutions, governments, and individuals worldwide. It operates through Global Banking & Markets, Asset & Wealth Management, and Platform Solutions segments. The Global Banking & Markets segment provides financial advisory services, including strategic advisory assignments related to mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, corporate defense activities, restructurings, and spin-offs; and relationship lending, and acquisition financing, as well as secured lending, through structured credit and asset-backed lending and involved in financing under securities to resale agreements.