Investors Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS)

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GSGet Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Friday. Investors bought 149,954 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 284% compared to the average daily volume of 39,028 call options.

Insider Transactions at The Goldman Sachs Group

In other news, insider Alex S. Golten sold 1,092 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $936.89, for a total transaction of $1,023,083.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John F.W. Rogers sold 13,151 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $959.03, for a total value of $12,612,203.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 39,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,408,883.21. This represents a 25.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 117,283 shares of company stock valued at $112,016,033. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Goldman Sachs Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GS. Hartline Investment Corp raised its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 153.3% in the third quarter. Hartline Investment Corp now owns 1,421 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 860 shares during the period. A4 Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $940,000. Stevens Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,392,000. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 39.4% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,332 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $1,857,000 after buying an additional 659 shares during the period. Finally, AlTi Global Inc. increased its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 87.3% during the third quarter. AlTi Global Inc. now owns 29,770 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $23,707,000 after acquiring an additional 13,879 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.21% of the company’s stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

Shares of GS traded down $71.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $857.90. The stock had a trading volume of 5,544,925 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,543,159. The Goldman Sachs Group has a 52 week low of $439.38 and a 52 week high of $984.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.29, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $924.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $835.31. The firm has a market cap of $257.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.73, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.34.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GSGet Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 15th. The investment management company reported $13.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $11.52 by $2.03. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 15.19% and a net margin of 13.73%.The company had revenue of $15.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $11.95 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Goldman Sachs Group will post 47.12 EPS for the current year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a $4.50 dividend. This represents a $18.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from The Goldman Sachs Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $4.00. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is presently 31.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on GS. HSBC increased their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $742.00 to $802.00 in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Dbs Bank raised their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $800.00 to $890.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $775.00 to $970.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on The Goldman Sachs Group from $750.00 to $775.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, The Goldman Sachs Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $916.86.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on GS

Trending Headlines about The Goldman Sachs Group

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About The Goldman Sachs Group

(Get Free Report)

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc is a global investment banking and financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1869 as a commercial paper business, the company has grown into a diversified financial institution that provides a broad range of services to corporations, financial institutions, governments and individuals. The firm is led by Chief Executive Officer David M. Solomon and operates across major financial centers worldwide.

Goldman Sachs’ core businesses include investment banking, global markets, asset and wealth management, and consumer banking.

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