The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) Shares Sold by Banco Santander S.A.

Banco Santander S.A. reduced its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) by 18.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 51,821 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 11,655 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $29,674,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 30,068.9% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 7,500,000 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $3,713,325,000 after purchasing an additional 7,475,140 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter worth $624,844,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 14,007.0% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,059,716 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $606,815,000 after purchasing an additional 1,052,204 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 21.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,898,637 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,435,144,000 after purchasing an additional 521,054 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC raised its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 1,400.8% during the fourth quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 419,095 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $239,982,000 after purchasing an additional 391,170 shares during the last quarter. 71.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Goldman Sachs Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GS opened at $559.55 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $381.42 and a 1 year high of $672.19. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $616.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $565.29. The firm has a market cap of $174.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.37.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The investment management company reported $11.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.21 by $3.74. The firm had revenue of $13.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.36 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 11.32% and a return on equity of 13.30%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.48 earnings per share. As a group, 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 firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Alex S. Golten sold 5,208 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $636.25, for a total value of $3,313,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,545 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,255,506.25. This trade represents a 59.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Treasurer Carey Halio sold 1,545 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $624.67, for a total transaction of $965,115.15. Following the completion of the sale, the treasurer now owns 8,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,117,296.64. The trade was a 15.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 19,925 shares of company stock valued at $12,630,683. 0.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on GS shares. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Friday, February 28th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $485.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Hsbc Global Res cut The Goldman Sachs Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $736.00 to $782.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $713.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $591.69.

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.