Excalibur Management Corp Sells 237 Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS)

Excalibur Management Corp lessened its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,454 shares of the investment management company’s stock after selling 237 shares during the quarter. The Goldman Sachs Group accounts for 1.0% of Excalibur Management Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Excalibur Management Corp’s holdings in The Goldman Sachs Group were worth $2,550,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in The Goldman Sachs Group in the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 71.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

The Goldman Sachs Group Stock Performance

NYSE:GS opened at $586.16 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $182.90 billion, a PE ratio of 14.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $611.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $570.61. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $387.12 and a 12-month high of $672.19. 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 (NYSE:GS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The investment management company reported $11.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.21 by $3.74. The Goldman Sachs Group had a net margin of 11.32% and a return on equity of 13.30%. The company had revenue of $13.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.36 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.48 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 22.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate 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 firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $3.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The Goldman Sachs Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling at The Goldman Sachs Group

In other The Goldman Sachs Group news, Director Kevin R. Johnson bought 2,400 shares of The Goldman Sachs Group stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $619.02 per share, with a total value of $1,485,648.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,400 shares in the company, valued at $1,485,648. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Alex S. Golten sold 5,208 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $636.25, for a total value of $3,313,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,255,506.25. The trade was a 59.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 19,925 shares of company stock worth $12,630,683. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on GS. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $585.00 to $550.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Oppenheimer cut The Goldman Sachs Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $713.00 to $760.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $782.00 to $659.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Ten investment 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 company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $593.27.

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.