The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $717.00.

GS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Friday. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $785.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $600.00 price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Monday, July 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $752.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $706.00 to $854.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

GS stock opened at $796.13 on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group has a 1-year low of $439.38 and a 1-year high of $825.25. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $756.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $657.99. The company has a market capitalization of $241.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.54, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The investment management company reported $10.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.82 by $1.09. The firm had revenue of $14.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.53 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 14.32%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $8.62 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Goldman Sachs Group will post 47.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th were given a $4.00 dividend. This represents a $16.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from The Goldman Sachs Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.00. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO John E. Waldron sold 9,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $750.51, for a total transaction of $6,754,590.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 106,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,755,196.68. The trade was a 7.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John F.W. Rogers sold 6,008 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were 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 directly owned 65,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,176,283.79. This trade represents a 8.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,323 shares of company stock valued at $28,111,828 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Goldman Sachs Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,474 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $1,989,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 888 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $508,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC grew its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 1,425 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $779,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN raised its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 3,165 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $1,729,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Courier Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 0.6% during the first quarter. Courier Capital LLC now owns 4,046 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $2,210,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.21% of the company’s stock.

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.