Financial Counselors Inc. Has $1.79 Million Stock Holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS)

Financial Counselors Inc. lifted its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) by 25.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,119 shares of the investment management company’s stock after purchasing an additional 634 shares during the quarter. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $1,786,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.21% of the company’s stock.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

GS opened at $559.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $609.83 and a 200-day moving average of $570.55. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $387.12 and a 52-week high of $672.19.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The investment management company reported $11.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.21 by $3.74. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 13.30% and a net margin of 11.32%. The firm had revenue of $13.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.48 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 22.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 47.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $3.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s payout ratio is presently 29.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on GS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $605.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on The Goldman Sachs Group from $782.00 to $659.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $593.27.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Treasurer Carey Halio sold 1,545 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $624.67, for a total value of $965,115.15. Following the completion of the sale, the treasurer now directly owns 8,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,117,296.64. This represents a 15.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kevin R. Johnson bought 2,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $619.02 per share, for a total transaction of $1,485,648.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,485,648. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,925 shares of company stock worth $12,630,683 in the last quarter. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.