Goldman Sachs’ net rises 5 percent on underwriting
2013-04-17 15:41:03
Goldman Sachs reported first-quarter results that beat analysts’ forecasts thanks to a pickup in stock and bond underwriting.
The bank earned $2.2 billion in the first quarter, up 5 percent from a year ago.
The earnings were equivalent to $4.29 per share. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected $3.90 per share.
Revenue was $10.1 billion, up 1 percent from a year ago. That also beat analysts’ forecast of $9.7 billion.
The investment bank underwrote more stock and bond offerings, though the unit that trades on behalf of clients was down over the year.
“Investment banking was key bright spot rising 36 percent year over year, beating our estimate by $250 million on a 69 percent year over year rise in [debt underwriting], and a
53 percent increase in [equity underwriting].” Citigroup analysts wrote in a note to clients.
Goldman also said it would continue to focus on cutting costs.
According to the Citigroup analysts, a reduction in compensation for employees from 44 percent to 43 percent of revenue helped the company beat earnings.
Fixed Income trading, however, decreased markedly by 9 percent, because of a hard comparison with the first quarter of 2012. Then, the company made money trading the European Central Bank’s Long Term Refinancing Operation scheme and benefited from large moves in interest rates, says Citigroup.
Goldman Sachs’ stock was up 0.4 percent in pre-market trading Tuesday, rising 54 cents to $147.