Highland Capital Management LLC Has $26.45 Million Stock Position in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $GS

Key Points

• Highland Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 7.1% in Q2, holding 37,365 shares worth approximately $26.45 million, making it their 12th largest holding.
• Recent analyst ratings show a mix of opinions on GS, with Citigroup raising its price target significantly from $550 to $700 and several firms maintaining a "Hold" rating.
• The Goldman Sachs Group has recently paid its quarterly dividend of $4.00 per share, increasing from the previous $3.00, indicating a positive shift in dividend policy.

Highland Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) by 7.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 37,365 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 2,873 shares during the period. The Goldman Sachs Group comprises approximately 1.4% of Highland Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Highland Capital Management LLC's holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $26,445,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GS. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 17.1% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,474 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $1,989,000 after buying an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 888 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $508,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $240,000. Vest Financial LLC grew its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 73.4% in the first quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 3,116 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $1,702,000 after purchasing an additional 1,319 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foster Group Inc. increased its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 16.1% during the 1st quarter. Foster Group Inc. now owns 513 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $280,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.21% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on GS. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Citigroup lifted their price objective 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. Wall Street Zen raised shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $771.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $750.00 to $843.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Goldman Sachs Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $717.00.

Insider Activity at The Goldman Sachs Group

In other The Goldman Sachs Group news, COO John E. Waldron sold 9,000 shares of The Goldman Sachs Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $750.51, for a total value of $6,754,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 106,268 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $79,755,196.68. The trade was a 7.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Denis P. Coleman sold 7,463 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.40, for a total value of $5,406,197.20. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 18,594 shares in the company, valued at $13,469,493.60. The trade was a 28.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 38,323 shares of company stock worth $28,111,828. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Up 1.4%

The Goldman Sachs Group stock opened at $790.32 on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $439.38 and a 12 month high of $825.25. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $755.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $655.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57. The firm has a market cap of $239.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.42.

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

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th were given a dividend of $4.00 per share. This represents a $16.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. This is a positive change from The Goldman Sachs Group's previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group's payout ratio is currently 35.26%.

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.

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