The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $GS Shares Sold by Aberdeen Group plc

Aberdeen Group plc lowered its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 276,385 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 6,062 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc’s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $242,942,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Acropolis Investment Management LLC grew its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Acropolis Investment Management LLC now owns 630 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $554,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Terra Nova Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Terra Nova Asset Management LLC now owns 2,650 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $2,329,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 3.5% during the third quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC now owns 388 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $309,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. EWA LLC boosted its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 2.2% during the third quarter. EWA LLC now owns 612 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $488,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the period. Finally, Carrera Capital Advisors grew its holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors now owns 385 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $306,000 after buying an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.21% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Alex S. Golten sold 1,092 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $936.89, for a total transaction of $1,023,083.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP John F.W. Rogers sold 2,704 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $960.99, for a total transaction of $2,598,516.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 9,428 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,060,213.72. The trade was a 22.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 117,283 shares of company stock worth $112,016,033 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting The Goldman Sachs Group

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

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman completed its acquisition of Innovator Capital Management for $2 billion, immediately boosting GS Asset Management’s ETF capability and lifting its ETF AUM to about $90B — a clear earnings/fee accretive move that expands recurring revenue. Goldman Sachs Finalizes $2 Billion Purchase of ETF Firm Innovator
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman is participating in fee-rich mandates: acting as lead advisor on Golar LNG’s strategic review and joining the core underwriting group for a potential SpaceX IPO. At the same time it issued new multi-currency senior and subordinated notes — pairing balance-sheet funding with advisory and capital-markets revenue opportunities. These deal flows support near-term fee income and underwriting pipelines. Should Goldman’s Expanding LNG and Space Deals…
• Positive Sentiment: Barrick Gold tapped Goldman to lead an IPO for its North American mines — another underwriting/advisory win that could translate into meaningful fees if the deal proceeds. Barrick taps Goldman Sachs to lead IPO
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman’s market commentary and analyst work (e.g., notes on market resilience, stock picks, and sector coverage/initiations) keeps the firm visible and supports trading & ECM workflows, but is unlikely by itself to move fundamentals quickly. Goldman Sachs Says Markets Stay Strong
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman (like JPMorgan) is exploring entry into prediction markets — an early-stage strategic initiative that could open new product lines but is not an immediate revenue driver. JPMorgan & Goldman Sachs eye prediction markets
• Negative Sentiment: Goldman Paris received a security warning and staff were told to work from home after a thwarted attack — an operational/security concern that adds short-term disruption risk and potential expenses. Goldman and Citi tell Paris staff to work from home
• Negative Sentiment: Prime-brokerage data show hedge funds sold global stocks at the fastest pace in 13 years, a sign of market stress that could pressure GS’s trading and principal revenues if volatility and outflows persist. Hedge funds bail from global stocks
• Negative Sentiment: HSBC cut its price target on GS to $729 (down from $802), signaling some analyst caution; Morgan Stanley also trimmed its target (still equal-weight). Analyst downgrades/target cuts can weigh on sentiment even if fundamentals remain intact. HSBC adjusts price target on Goldman Sachs

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on GS. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Daiwa Securities Group increased their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $927.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $775.00 to $970.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Zacks Research cut shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a report on Friday, January 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $929.52.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GS opened at $863.92 on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $439.38 and a 1 year high of $984.70. The firm has a market cap of $254.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.84, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $876.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $850.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.66.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 15th. The investment management company reported $13.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.52 by $2.03. The company had revenue of $15.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.30 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 13.73%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $11.95 EPS. Research analysts forecast that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a $4.50 dividend. This represents a $18.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is a boost from The Goldman Sachs Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $4.00. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.09%.

The Goldman Sachs Group Company Profile

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc is a global investment banking and financial services firm headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1869 as a commercial paper business, the company has grown into a diversified financial institution that provides a broad range of services to corporations, financial institutions, governments and individuals. The firm is led by Chief Executive Officer David M. Solomon and operates across major financial centers worldwide.

Goldman Sachs’ core businesses include investment banking, global markets, asset and wealth management, and consumer banking.