U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs (GS) has issued fourth-quarter financial results that blew past Wall Street forecasts due largely to robust stock trading.
The New York-based firm reported earnings per share (EPS) of $11.95 U.S., which far exceeded the $8.22 U.S. consensus estimate among analysts.
Fourth-quarter revenue of $13.87 billion U.S. topped forecasts that had called for sales of $12.39 billion U.S. Revenues were up 23% from a year earlier.
The bank said that its quarterly profit roughly doubled from a year ago as revenues grew while expenses declined.
Management said that money generated from higher stock and fixed income trading, as well as strong investment banking activity, largely drove the Q4 2024 performance.
Equity trading generated $3.45 billion U.S. in revenue during the quarter, roughly $450 million U.S. more than expected by analysts who track the bank’s progress.
Goldman Sachs said that it too is seeing a rebound in Wall Street deals that include mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and initial public offerings (IPOs).
Investment banking revenue for the entire industry on Wall Street rose 29% in the fourth quarter, according to data from Dealogic, fueled by rising advisory services.
Goldman Sachs’ stock has gained 50% in the last 12 months to trade at $571.53 U.S. per share.
