Birinyi Associates Inc. Sells 2,281 Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $GS

Key Points

• Birinyi Associates Inc. sold 2,281 shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, reducing its stake by 19.6% in the second quarter, now holding 9,375 shares worth approximately $6.6 million.
• The Goldman Sachs Group reported $10.91 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates by $1.09, alongside a revenue surge of 14.5% year-over-year.
• The firm recently increased its quarterly dividend from $3.00 to $4.00, translating to an annualized yield of 2.0%, with a dividend payout ratio of 35.26%.

Birinyi Associates Inc. reduced its position in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) by 19.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,375 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 2,281 shares during the period. The Goldman Sachs Group accounts for about 1.9% of Birinyi Associates Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Birinyi Associates Inc.'s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $6,635,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GS. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd acquired a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 1,800.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 38 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 46.9% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 72 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC boosted its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 45.9% in the second quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 54 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. 71.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

The Goldman Sachs Group Price Performance

NYSE:GS opened at $788.56 on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a one year low of $439.38 and a one year high of $825.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market cap of $238.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.38, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.42. The firm's fifty day moving average is $757.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $658.90.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The investment management company reported $10.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.82 by $1.09. The business had revenue of $14.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.53 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 14.32% and a net margin of 12.37%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $8.62 EPS. Research analysts expect 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th were issued a $4.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 29th. This is a boost from The Goldman Sachs Group's previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. This represents a $16.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The Goldman Sachs Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised The Goldman Sachs Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. HSBC lifted their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $652.00 to $677.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $785.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $706.00 to $854.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $752.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $727.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP John F.W. Rogers sold 6,008 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $717.39, for a total value of $4,310,079.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 65,761 shares in the company, valued at $47,176,283.79. The trade was a 8.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO John E. Waldron sold 9,244 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $750.11, for a total transaction of $6,934,016.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 115,268 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $86,463,679.48. This trade represents a 7.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 38,323 shares of company stock valued at $28,111,828. Insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

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.

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