Aspiriant LLC Reduces Position in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $GS

Aspiriant LLC trimmed its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,003 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 22 shares during the quarter. Aspiriant LLC’s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $710,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 1,800.0% during the second quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 38 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd purchased a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC grew its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 45.9% in the 2nd quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 54 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 46.9% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 72 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. 71.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

The Goldman Sachs Group Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:GS opened at $750.71 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $227.25 billion, a PE ratio of 15.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $439.38 and a 12-month high of $825.25. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $765.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $670.40.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 14th. The investment management company reported $12.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.27 by $1.98. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 14.79% and a net margin of 13.18%.The firm had revenue of $11.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $8.40 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $4.00 per share. This represents a $16.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is 32.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $785.00 to $855.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Zacks Research lowered The Goldman Sachs Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on The Goldman Sachs Group from $854.00 to $828.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Daiwa Capital Markets increased their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $756.00 to $810.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $720.00 to $850.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Goldman Sachs Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $770.73.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John F.W. Rogers sold 6,008 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 65,761 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,176,283.79. This represents a 8.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO John E. Waldron sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $750.51, for a total value 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 $79,755,196.68. The trade was a 7.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 38,323 shares of company stock worth $28,111,828. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.