The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $GS Position Cut by Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. reduced its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,324 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 2,490 shares during the quarter. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $43,817,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sky Investment Group LLC grew its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 0.9% in the second quarter. Sky Investment Group LLC now owns 1,168 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,181,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 3.9% during the second quarter. Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 269 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Pines Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Pines Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,566 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $2,255,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC raised its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 1,430 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $1,257,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Group Corp lifted its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 4.7% in the first quarter. First Financial Group Corp now owns 246 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 71.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $1,100.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $1,195.00 to $1,325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $1,070.00 to $1,190.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,062.86.

Key The Goldman Sachs Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting The Goldman Sachs Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs was among the financial giants receiving a “Buy” growth grade, reinforcing the view that its earnings growth, capital-markets franchise and strategic positioning remain attractive. Citigroup and Goldman Sachs lead as most financial giants earn Buy growth grades
• Positive Sentiment: The firm is reportedly expanding into India’s government share-sale market. Greater participation in equity offerings could create additional investment-banking revenue and deepen Goldman’s presence in a fast-growing market. Goldman Sachs expands into India’s government share sale market
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman agreed to pay up to $2.25 billion for NEOS Investments, the issuer of high-income ETFs. The acquisition supports Goldman’s asset-management and wealth-products strategy, although investors will monitor the price paid and integration execution. Goldman Sachs acquisition of NEOS Investments
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman research said gold could exceed its $4,900 year-end forecast amid options demand, Western investor buying and central-bank purchases. The call may benefit the firm’s commodities and trading franchise, but changing interest-rate expectations could increase market volatility and forecasting risk. Gold could top Goldman’s forecast
• Negative Sentiment: Goldman strategists described July as one of the sharpest hedge-fund de-grossing episodes of the past decade, with hedge funds posting an unusually weak month relative to the S&P 500. Continued de-risking could pressure trading activity and investment-banking sentiment across Wall Street. Goldman Sachs hedge funds worst month versus S&P 500

The Goldman Sachs Group Trading Up 3.9%

Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group stock opened at $1,041.35 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,053.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $964.40. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $718.58 and a fifty-two week high of $1,153.99. The firm has a market cap of $303.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.17.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The investment management company reported $20.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $14.47 by $6.51. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 19.16% and a net margin of 15.53%.The firm had revenue of $20.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $10.91 earnings per share. The Goldman Sachs Group’s revenue was up 39.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 68.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $5.00 per share. This is a positive change from The Goldman Sachs Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $4.50. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $20.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is 27.78%.

The Goldman Sachs Group Company Profile

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.