The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Hsbc Global Res

Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. HSBC downgraded The Goldman Sachs Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $569.00 to $608.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on The Goldman Sachs Group from $560.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays raised their target price on The Goldman Sachs Group from $565.00 to $588.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $555.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, The Goldman Sachs Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $550.63.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

The Goldman Sachs Group stock opened at $605.22 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $534.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $496.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $189.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.35. 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 has a 12-month low of $334.87 and a 12-month high of $611.30.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The investment management company reported $8.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.89 by $1.51. The company had revenue of $12.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.77 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 9.89% and a return on equity of 11.39%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.47 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Goldman Sachs Group will post 37.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $3.00 dividend. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.21%.

Insider Transactions at The Goldman Sachs Group

In related news, insider Brian J. Lee sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $530.90, for a total value of $1,061,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,359,435.50. This trade represents a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP John F.W. Rogers sold 6,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $596.36, for a total transaction of $3,826,245.76. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,614 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,358,685.04. This represents a 10.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,390 shares of company stock valued at $6,656,119. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the second quarter worth about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 103.3% during the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 61 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the third quarter worth about $30,000. 71.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About The Goldman Sachs Group

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.