The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) Shares Bought by Whittier Trust Co.

Whittier Trust Co. grew its holdings in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) by 26.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 91,306 shares of the investment management company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,219 shares during the quarter. The Goldman Sachs Group accounts for approximately 0.7% of Whittier Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $52,282,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.21% of the company’s stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GS opened at $557.62 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $386.00 and a fifty-two week high of $672.19. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $611.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $567.75. The firm has a market cap of $174.00 billion, a PE ratio of 13.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.37.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.21 by $3.74. The business had revenue of $13.87 billion during 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.48 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect 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 business also recently announced 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 2.15%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is currently 29.59%.

Insider Transactions at The Goldman Sachs Group

In other news, Director Kevin R. Johnson purchased 2,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $619.02 per share, with a total value of $1,485,648.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,485,648. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Sheara J. Fredman sold 2,034 shares of The Goldman Sachs Group stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 6,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,047,349.55. This represents a 23.96 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 19,925 shares of company stock valued at $12,630,683. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered The Goldman Sachs Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $690.00 to $660.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $713.00 to $760.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $550.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $594.27.

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.