The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) Shares Down 1.7% – Should You Sell?

Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) fell 1.7% during mid-day trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $870.82 and last traded at $876.0650. Approximately 1,775,576 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 20% from the average daily volume of 2,220,066 shares. The stock had previously closed at $891.30.

The Goldman Sachs Group News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Freedom Broker upgraded GS from “Hold” to “Buy” and set a $1,100 price target, implying approximately 25.6% upside from the referenced share price. However, the target was reduced from $1,200, which somewhat tempers the bullish signal. Freedom Broker upgrades Goldman Sachs to Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reported particularly strong equities performance in the third quarter, with net revenue rising 72% year over year to $6.44 billion. Robust client activity, financing demand and derivatives contributed to the result, supporting optimism about earnings momentum. Goldman Sachs equities revenue growth
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded Goldman Sachs to a Rank #2 (“Buy”), citing improving expectations for the company’s earnings prospects. Zacks upgrades Goldman Sachs to Buy

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on GS shares. TD Cowen started coverage on The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Thursday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $1,050.00 target price for the company. Loop Capital set a $1,050.00 price target on The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $970.00 to $950.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,052.48.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $255.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $959.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $990.65.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 13th. The investment management company reported $17.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $12.86 by $4.15. The company had revenue of $18.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.83 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 19.55% and a net margin of 15.77%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s revenue was up 23.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $12.25 EPS. Analysts forecast that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 70.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $5.00 per share. This represents a $20.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.76%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Goldman Sachs Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Turim 21 Investimentos Ltda. purchased a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Strive Financial Group LLC increased its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 316.7% during the 2nd quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC now owns 25 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. raised its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 188.9% during the 2nd quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. now owns 26 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 30 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 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.