The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $GS Shares Sold by Kestra Advisory Services LLC

Key Points

• Kestra Advisory Services LLC reduced its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 3.9%, holding 62,750 shares worth $34.28 million at the end of the last quarter.
• The firm declared a quarterly dividend of $4.00, an increase from the previous $3.00, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 2.2%.
• Analysts have a consensus price target of $660.00 for Goldman Sachs, with one Strong Buy rating, five Buy ratings, and eleven Hold ratings issued.

Kestra Advisory Services LLC lowered its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) by 3.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 62,750 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 2,536 shares during the quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC's holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $34,280,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GS. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd purchased a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. American Capital Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 worth $30,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 326.7% in the first quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 64 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. 71.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on GS shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on 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. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $680.00 to $715.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to 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 Trading Down 0.7%

GS opened at $715.3670 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $216.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.38. The firm's 50 day moving average is $702.98 and its 200-day moving average is $620.13. 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 Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $439.38 and a 52-week high of $749.05.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.53 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $8.62 EPS. The business's revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. 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. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a $4.00 dividend. This represents a $16.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. This is a positive change from The Goldman Sachs Group's previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group's payout ratio is presently 26.44%.

Insider Activity at The Goldman Sachs Group

In other The Goldman Sachs Group news, CFO Denis P. Coleman sold 7,463 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 $13,469,493.60. This trade represents a 28.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO David M. Solomon sold 6,608 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 20,079 shares of company stock valued at $14,423,221. Insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

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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