The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• The Goldman Sachs Group has received an average rating of "Hold" from 17 brokerages, with one sell rating, eleven holds, and five buy ratings.
• The company recently reported $10.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, exceeding analyst estimates by $1.09, with a revenue of $14.58 billion, a 14.5% increase year-over-year.
• Goldman Sachs has increased its quarterly dividend to $4.00 per share, yielding 2.2%, up from the previous dividend of $3.00.

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $660.00.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on GS shares. Hsbc Global Res downgraded The Goldman Sachs Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup upped their target price 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. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Monday, July 14th. HSBC reissued a "reduce" rating and issued a $627.00 target price (up from $558.00) on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Thursday, July 10th.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

Shares of GS stock opened at $730.50 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $221.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.10, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.38. The company's 50 day moving average is $694.80 and its 200 day moving average is $617.51. 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 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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $13.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $8.62 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Goldman Sachs Group will post 47.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The company 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 2.2%. This is an increase from The Goldman Sachs Group's previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. The Goldman Sachs Group's payout ratio is 26.44%.

Insider Transactions at The Goldman Sachs Group

In other news, CEO David M. Solomon sold 6,608 shares of the firm'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 transaction of $4,706,944.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 126,176 shares in the company, valued at $89,876,426.56. This trade represents a 4.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP John F.W. Rogers sold 6,008 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $717.39, for a total transaction of $4,310,079.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 65,761 shares of the company's stock, valued at $47,176,283.79. This represents a 8.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 20,079 shares of company stock worth $14,423,221 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of The Goldman Sachs Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd purchased a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 1,800.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 38 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. American Capital Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 170.0% during the first quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 54 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.21% 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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