The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) Shares Sold by First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.

First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) by 7.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,229 shares of the investment management company's stock after selling 2,354 shares during the quarter. The Goldman Sachs Group comprises about 3.7% of First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $17,060,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in GS. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 17.1% in 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 lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG bought a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the 4th quarter worth about $583,000. Highview Capital Management LLC DE lifted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 71.21% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on GS shares. Wall Street Zen lowered The Goldman Sachs Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $570.00 to $592.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $585.00 to $550.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $560.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Daiwa America cut shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, The Goldman Sachs Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $595.67.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group stock traded up $17.70 during trading on Monday, reaching $708.51. The stock had a trading volume of 3,971,662 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,382,312. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The company has a market capitalization of $217.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.44, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $598.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $587.06. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $437.37 and a 52 week high of $719.26.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 14th. The investment management company reported $14.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $12.57 by $1.55. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 13.76% and a net margin of 11.86%. The firm had revenue of $15.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.99 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $11.58 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other The Goldman Sachs Group news, Director John B. Hess purchased 3,904 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $511.68 per share, for a total transaction of $1,997,598.72. Following the purchase, the director owned 3,904 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,997,598.72. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group 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.