The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $838.61 and last traded at $835.1960, with a volume of 649488 shares. The stock had previously closed at $810.31.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on GS. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $752.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $843.00 price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $785.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $850.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $725.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $786.00.

The Goldman Sachs Group Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $237.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $784.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $707.77.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The investment management company reported $12.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.27 by $1.98. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 14.79%. The firm had revenue of $15.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $8.40 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 EPS for the current year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $4.00 per share. This represents a $16.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is presently 32.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO John E. Waldron sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $750.51, for a total transaction of $6,754,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 106,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,755,196.68. This trade represents a 7.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Goldman Sachs Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,474 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,989,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,675 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $915,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 37.0% in the first quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 100 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, Ascent Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 3.4% in the first quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,190 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $3,928,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.