The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) Stock Falls 1.6% – Should You Sell?

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS)’s share price was down 1.6% during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as low as $881.00 and last traded at $889.9490. Approximately 2,029,297 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 9% from the average session volume of 2,224,225 shares. The stock had previously closed at $904.72.

The Goldman Sachs Group News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade supports earnings outlook. Zacks upgraded Goldman Sachs to a Rank #2 (Buy), citing growing optimism about the company’s earnings prospects. Goldman Upgraded to Buy
• Positive Sentiment: AI-related trading activity is boosting Wall Street revenue. Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley reportedly captured nearly 80% of the top-five banks’ equity-trading revenue this year, driven partly by heavy hedge-fund borrowing for leveraged positions in AI hardware and Asian semiconductor stocks. This trend could benefit Goldman’s trading and financing businesses. Goldman Sachs and AI Trading
• Positive Sentiment: Recent quarterly results remain a key fundamental catalyst. Goldman reported earnings and revenue well above consensus expectations, with revenue up 23% year over year. Commentary describing the stock as a potential buy after earnings reinforces the view that investment banking, markets and asset-management performance are supporting results. Goldman Sachs After Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Expansion in asset management could add long-term growth. Goldman Sachs is reportedly prepared to pay up to $2.25 billion to acquire ETF manager NEOS Investments, a move that would broaden its exchange-traded-fund and income-investing offerings. Goldman Sachs and NEOS Investments
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman’s research estimates that China bought substantially more gold than officially reported between May and August. The finding may increase attention on Goldman’s research franchise, but it has no clear direct effect on GS earnings. China’s Hidden Gold Buying
• Negative Sentiment: Price-target pressure and fund selling may be offsetting the bullish news. BMO Capital Markets lowered its expectations for GS stock, while ETFs were reported as net sellers. Shares also remain below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages, suggesting weaker technical momentum.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. HSBC boosted their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $995.00 to $1,007.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 28th. Morgan Stanley set a $1,145.00 price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Loop Capital set a $1,050.00 price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $1,048.00 to $1,245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,050.32.

The Goldman Sachs Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.82, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $962.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $991.46. The company has a market capitalization of $259.13 billion, a PE ratio of 12.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.29.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 13th. The investment management company reported $17.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.86 by $4.15. The firm had revenue of $18.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.83 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 19.55%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $12.25 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 70.89 EPS for the current year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 2nd will be issued a $5.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 2nd. This represents a $20.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.76%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Goldman Sachs Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $24,172,123,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the second quarter worth about $6,756,772,000. Orange County Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the second quarter worth about $69,537,544,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the second quarter worth about $2,560,028,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the first quarter worth about $2,024,921,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.21% of the company’s stock.

About The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc is a global financial services company that provides investment banking, securities, asset management and wealth management services to corporations, financial institutions, governments and individual investors. Its investment banking activities include advising on mergers and acquisitions, public and private offerings, restructurings and other strategic transactions.

Through its global markets businesses, Goldman Sachs helps clients buy and sell securities and other financial instruments and provides financing, risk management and market-making services.