The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) Stake Reduced by Mizuho Securities USA LLC

Key Points

• Mizuho Securities USA LLC reduced its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 16.0%, now holding 24,985 shares valued at approximately $13.65 million.
• Several institutional investors have increased their stakes, with notable increases including Godsey & Gibb Inc. by 170.0% and Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC by 326.7% during the first quarter.
• The Goldman Sachs Group announced a quarterly dividend increase to $4.00, up from $3.00, reflecting a growing dividend payout ratio of 26.44%.

Mizuho Securities USA LLC decreased its position in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) by 16.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,985 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 4,767 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $13,649,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of 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 valued at $1,989,000 after buying an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 888 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $508,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG purchased a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $583,000. Highview Capital Management LLC DE boosted its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 3,817 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $2,186,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 24,451 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $14,002,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.21% of the company's stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GS traded up $2.02 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $721.76. 1,275,362 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,002,584. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $439.38 and a 52 week high of $737.88. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $681.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $614.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The company has a market cap of $218.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.90, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.38.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $9.82 by $1.09. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 14.32%. The business had revenue of $14.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $8.62 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a dividend of $4.00 per share. This is an increase 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 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.44%.

Insider Activity at The Goldman Sachs Group

In other The Goldman Sachs Group news, CEO David M. Solomon sold 6,608 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $712.31, for a total value of $4,706,944.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 126,176 shares in the company, valued at approximately $89,876,426.56. The trade was a 4.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Denis P. Coleman sold 7,463 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $724.40, for a total transaction of $5,406,197.20. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. 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 ninety days. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on GS. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $760.00 to $720.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Monday, July 14th. HSBC reaffirmed 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. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $550.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, The Goldman Sachs Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $660.00.

The Goldman Sachs Group Company 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.