The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $GS Position Trimmed by Westpac Banking Corp

Westpac Banking Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) by 1.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 19,658 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 384 shares during the period. The Goldman Sachs Group accounts for 0.9% of Westpac Banking Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $13,913,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd acquired a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 1,800.0% in the second quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 38 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Clearstead Trust LLC bought a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Ridgewood Investments LLC raised its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 45.9% during the 2nd quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 54 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. Finally, MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. 71.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

GS stock opened at $790.56 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $785.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $710.58. The company has a market capitalization of $237.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.06, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $439.38 and a fifty-two week high of $841.28.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 14th. The investment management company reported $12.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.27 by $1.98. The company had revenue of $15.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.68 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 14.79%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $8.40 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $4.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 2nd. This represents a $16.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is presently 32.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on GS shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Dbs Bank boosted their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $800.00 to $890.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research lowered shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $850.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, HSBC upped their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $652.00 to $677.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $786.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other The Goldman Sachs Group news, COO John E. Waldron sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $750.51, for a total transaction of $6,754,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 106,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $79,755,196.68. This trade represents a 7.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.55% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.