Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Buys 284 Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) by 7.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,125 shares of the investment management company’s stock after acquiring an additional 284 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $2,254,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. increased its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 170.0% in the 1st quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 54 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 71.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

The Goldman Sachs Group Price Performance

Shares of GS stock opened at $640.30 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $581.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $584.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The firm has a market cap of $196.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.32. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a one year low of $437.37 and a one year high of $672.19.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 14th. The investment management company reported $14.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.57 by $1.55. The company had revenue of $15.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.99 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 13.76% and a net margin of 11.86%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $11.58 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $610.00 to $560.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $585.00 to $550.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered The Goldman Sachs Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $690.00 to $660.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $558.00 price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $760.00 to $720.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $593.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Goldman Sachs Group news, Director John B. Hess acquired 3,904 shares of The Goldman Sachs Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $511.68 per share, with a total value of $1,997,598.72. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,904 shares in the company, valued at $1,997,598.72. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group 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.