Sovran Advisors LLC Sells 1,210 Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $GS

Key Points

• Sovran Advisors LLC reduced its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 56.3% in the second quarter, now holding 940 shares valued at approximately $655,000.
• The Goldman Sachs Group recently announced a $4.00 quarterly dividend, marking an increase from the previous $3.00 dividend, with a projected 2.0% dividend yield.
• Following recent analyst reports, the stock has an average target price of $665.00, with five analysts rating it as a Buy and eleven as Hold.

Sovran Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) by 56.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 940 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 1,210 shares during the period. Sovran Advisors LLC's holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $655,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd purchased a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. American Capital Advisory LLC purchased a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. boosted its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 170.0% in the 1st quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 54 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 326.7% during the first quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 64 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. 71.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on GS. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $771.00 to $790.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $550.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $665.00.

The Goldman Sachs Group Price Performance

NYSE:GS traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $804.45. 3,788,014 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,604,564. The company has a market capitalization of $243.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.41. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $439.38 and a 12 month high of $809.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $738.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $638.30.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $14.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $8.62 EPS. The company's revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a dividend of $4.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $16.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is an increase from The Goldman Sachs Group's previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. The Goldman Sachs Group's payout ratio is 35.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Goldman Sachs Group

In other news, CFO Denis P. Coleman sold 7,463 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $724.40, for a total transaction of $5,406,197.20. Following the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO David M. Solomon sold 6,608 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $712.31, for a total transaction of $4,706,944.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 126,176 shares in the company, valued at $89,876,426.56. This represents a 4.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 38,323 shares of company stock worth $28,111,828 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

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.