Gabelli Funds LLC Trims Stake in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $GS

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC trimmed its Goldman Sachs stake by 7.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 4,100 shares and ending with 49,670 shares valued at about $43.66 million.
• Goldman Sachs reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $17.55 beating estimates and revenue of $17.23 billion topping expectations; revenue rose 14.4% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but cautious, with a consensus Hold rating and an average price target of $942.24, even as Goldman continues to see price-target adjustments from several brokerages.

Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) by 7.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,670 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 4,100 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $43,660,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of GS. Dagco Inc. purchased a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC raised its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 287.5% during the fourth quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 31 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Graney & King LLC raised its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 51.5% during the second quarter. Graney & King LLC now owns 50 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 71.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GS. Evercore reduced their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $1,075.00 to $950.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Daiwa Securities Group lifted their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $891.00 to $930.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $1,100.00 to $1,050.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered The Goldman Sachs Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $765.00 to $930.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $942.24.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of GS opened at $949.89 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $582.50 and a 12 month high of $984.70. The stock's 50 day moving average is $878.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $878.95. The firm has a market cap of $280.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.36, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.28.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 13th. The investment management company reported $17.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $15.92 by $1.63. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 16.53% and a net margin of 14.13%.The company had revenue of $17.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.66 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $14.12 earnings per share. The Goldman Sachs Group's quarterly revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 59.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $4.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $18.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The Goldman Sachs Group's payout ratio is currently 32.89%.

Insider Transactions at The Goldman Sachs Group

In other news, CAO Sheara J. Fredman sold 10,301 shares of The Goldman Sachs Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $929.17, for a total value of $9,571,380.17. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,338 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,889,079.46. The trade was a 61.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Alex S. Golten sold 1,116 shares of The Goldman Sachs Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $936.18, for a total value of $1,044,776.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 2,578 shares in the company, valued at $2,413,472.04. This represents a 30.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 26,824 shares of company stock valued at $25,062,242 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.55% 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 lowered its 12-month U.S. recession probability to 25% from 30%, citing a resilient labor market and solid economic activity. That suggests a healthier macro backdrop for banks and markets overall. Goldman Slashes Recession Risk Odds as Labor Market Remains Resilient
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman Sachs analysts remained active across several names, including Buy ratings on Telefonica, MercadoLibre, Insulet, Marathon Petroleum, UnitedHealth and ORIC Pharma, showing the firm continues to influence market sentiment but without direct impact on GS itself.
• Neutral Sentiment: There were also multiple media references to Goldman strategists warning that the recent market rally and volatility setup could imply more upside, but those commentary pieces were market-wide in nature and not specific to Goldman Sachs stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Financial stocks were weaker in afternoon trading, with the NYSE Financial Index down about 0.5%, which likely pressured Goldman Sachs shares along with the broader sector. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Lower in Afternoon Trading

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.

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