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

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eighteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $593.27.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $585.00 to $550.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $713.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on The Goldman Sachs Group from $782.00 to $659.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $605.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut The Goldman Sachs Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $690.00 to $660.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th.

The Goldman Sachs Group Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of GS stock opened at $559.47 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $174.58 billion, a PE ratio of 13.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.37. The Goldman Sachs Group has a 1 year low of $387.12 and a 1 year high of $672.19. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $609.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $570.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The investment management company reported $11.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.21 by $3.74. The company had revenue of $13.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.36 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 13.30% and a net margin of 11.32%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s quarterly revenue was up 22.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.48 EPS. Research analysts predict that The Goldman Sachs Group will post 47.12 earnings per share for the current year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Announces Dividend

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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $12.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is presently 29.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Treasurer Carey Halio sold 1,545 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $624.67, for a total transaction of $965,115.15. Following the sale, the treasurer now owns 8,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,117,296.64. This trade represents a 15.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Sheara J. Fredman sold 2,034 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $627.01, for a total transaction of $1,275,338.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,047,349.55. This represents a 23.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 19,925 shares of company stock worth $12,630,683. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The Goldman Sachs Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. 71.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.