Goldman Sachs Group Inc. posted a surprise jump in its trading business, rounding out a stellar quarter for Wall Street’s biggest banks.
The firm’s trading operation posted a 23% increase in revenue, defying analysts’ expectations that the business would struggle to keep up with last year’s pace and slide 9%. Results from fixed-income trading easily surpassed estimates.
“This quarter’s results demonstrated the diversity of contribution from across all four segments,” CFO Stephen Scherr said. “And it just shows the strength embedded within the business.”
Goldman’s consumer and wealth management business pulled in $2.02 billion, up 16% from a year earlier. The company last month inked a deal to buy GreenSky Inc. for about $2.24 billion to expand its consumer division. GreenSky offers payment plans to customers with home improvement projects or health care needs.
The Covid-19 pandemic has given a massive boost to banks’ trading and dealmaking operations. As economies recover and grow again, those businesses continue to deliver for U.S. finance giants. Goldman has already posted enough revenue through September -- $46.7 billion -- to give the firm its best year ever.
Last month, Goldman announced Scherr will leave the firm and hand over the reins to Denis Coleman III, who previously helped lead the financing group at the bank. Beth Hammack, who was the treasurer, will take over Coleman’s old role.
“It’s enormously gratifying to be leaving the firm at a point when it’s performing at an exceptional level,” Scherr said.
At Goldman, investment-banking gains were bolstered by outperformance in advisory, which brought in $1.65 billion. Trading-division revenue came in at $5.61 billion, according to a statement Friday, surging past even last year’s heated pace.
Goldman shares, which have surged 48% this year through Thursday, advanced 2.2% to $399.85 at 8:52 a.m. in early New York trading.
The bank’s asset management business, which also includes its growing alternatives investing platform, notched revenue of $2.28 billion, down 56% from a year earlier. Last month, Goldman listed its Petershill Partners unit in London, offering investors the ability to buy into its business that snaps up ownership stakes in various investment firms.
Also in Goldman’s results:
• Equity-trading revenue rose to 20% to $3.1 billion.
• Debt-underwriting revenue rose 27% to $726 million, while the firm pulled in $1.17 billion from equity underwriting, up 27% from a year earlier.
• Companywide revenue climbed 26% to $13.6 billion, compared with an average estimate of $11.6 billion.
• Net income came in at $14.93 a share. The company was expected to earn $9.92 a share, according to analysts in a Bloomberg survey.
AI is no replacement for trusted financial advisors, but it can meaningfully enhance their capabilities as well as the systems they rely on.
Prudential's Jordan Toma is no "Finfluencer," but he is a registered financial advisor with four million social media followers and a message of overcoming personal struggles that's reached kids in 150 school across the US.
GReminders is deepening its integration partnership with a national wealth firm, while Advisor CRM touts a free new meeting tool for RIAs.
The Texas-based former advisor reportedly bilked clients out of millions of dollars, keeping them in the dark with doctored statements and a fake email domain.
The $3.3 trillion tax and spending cut package narrowly got through the upper house, with JD Vance casting the deciding vote to overrule three GOP holdouts.
Orion's Tom Wilson on delivering coordinated, high-touch service in a world where returns alone no longer set you apart.
Barely a decade old, registered index-linked annuities have quickly surged in popularity, thanks to their unique blend of protection and growth potential—an appealing option for investors looking to chart a steadier course through today's choppy market waters, says Myles Lambert, Brighthouse Financial.
