The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $843.26 and last traded at $839.8230, with a volume of 352116 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $836.57.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $762.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $850.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Monday. 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. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets lifted their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $756.00 to $810.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $786.00.

The Goldman Sachs Group Trading Up 0.3%

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $788.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $730.83. The company has a market capitalization of $251.75 billion, a PE ratio of 17.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The investment management company reported $12.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.27 by $1.98. The firm had revenue of $15.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.68 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 15.29% and a net margin of 13.18%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 19.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $8.40 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 EPS for the current year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Announces Dividend

The firm 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 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is presently 32.50%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Goldman Sachs Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GS. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd acquired a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. First PREMIER Bank acquired a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the third quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Corundum Trust Company INC bought a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the third quarter valued at $29,000. 71.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The Goldman Sachs Group Company Profile

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.