The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after Evercore ISI raised their price target on the stock from $630.00 to $715.00. Evercore ISI currently has an outperform rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group traded as high as $718.73 and last traded at $717.29, with a volume of 1292754 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $706.46.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Daiwa America lowered shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $570.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. JMP Securities decreased their target price on The Goldman Sachs Group from $625.00 to $600.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $625.00 to $614.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $585.00 to $550.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $603.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John B. Hess acquired 3,904 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $511.68 per share, for a total transaction of $1,997,598.72. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 3,904 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,997,598.72. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. 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 worth $1,989,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in 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 worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG acquired a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the fourth quarter valued at $583,000. Highview Capital Management LLC DE increased its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 4.7% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Finally, Flputnam Investment Management Co. raised its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 1,128 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $646,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. 71.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Up 1.2%

The firm has a market cap of $219.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.35. The firm's fifty day moving average is $606.17 and its 200 day moving average is $588.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.68.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 14th. The investment management company reported $14.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $12.57 by $1.55. The company had revenue of $15.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.99 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 13.76% and a net margin of 11.86%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $11.58 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a dividend of $3.00 per share. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group's payout ratio is 27.85%.

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.