The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) Shares Sold by Banco Santander S.A.

Key Points

• Banco Santander S.A. reduced its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. by 13.7%, ending the quarter with 44,701 shares worth approximately $24.42 million.
• Research analysts have varied opinions on Goldman Sachs, with target prices ranging from $600 to $785, indicating a consensus rating of "Hold".
• The Goldman Sachs Group is increasing its dividend to $4.00 per share, up from $3.00, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 2.3%.

Banco Santander S.A. lowered its position in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) by 13.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 44,701 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 7,120 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $24,420,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GS. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 63,864.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,976,684 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $2,172,423,000 after acquiring an additional 3,970,467 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 23.7% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,586,348 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $2,053,614,000 after acquiring an additional 687,711 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,292,679 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $1,885,454,000 after acquiring 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 1st quarter worth $1,766,238,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,010,583 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $1,723,920,000 after acquiring an additional 229,673 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.21% of the company's stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group Trading Down 2.0%

NYSE GS traded down $14.19 during trading on Friday, hitting $709.40. The stock had a trading volume of 2,997,787 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,165,566. The company has a market capitalization of $217.67 billion, a PE ratio of 15.63, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $669.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $610.88. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $437.37 and a twelve month high of $737.88.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The investment management company reported $10.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.82 by $1.09. The company had revenue of $14.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.53 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 13.84% and a net margin of 12.37%. The Goldman Sachs Group's revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $8.62 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 earnings per share for the current year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a dividend of $4.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. This is a positive change from The Goldman Sachs Group's previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. This represents a $16.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The Goldman Sachs Group's payout ratio is currently 26.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John F.W. Rogers sold 6,008 shares of the company's 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 65,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,176,283.79. This represents a 8.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO David M. Solomon sold 6,608 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $712.31, for a total transaction of $4,706,944.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 126,176 shares in the company, valued at $89,876,426.56. The trade was a 4.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 20,079 shares of company stock worth $14,423,221. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $771.00 to $790.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Hsbc Global Res lowered The Goldman Sachs Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. HSBC reissued a "reduce" rating and set a $627.00 price objective (up from $558.00) on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Evercore ISI set a $715.00 price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $660.00.

The Goldman Sachs Group Profile

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.