Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. Invests $1.83 Million in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS)

Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE:GS - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 4,044 shares of the investment management company's stock, valued at approximately $1,829,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mission Wealth Management LP lifted its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 24.5% in the 4th quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 1,290 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $498,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its position in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 4,971 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $1,918,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. bought a new stake in The Goldman Sachs Group during the fourth quarter valued at $211,000. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. boosted its stake in The Goldman Sachs Group by 21.2% during the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 3,193 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $1,232,000 after buying an additional 559 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Financial LLC grew its position in The Goldman Sachs Group by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 1,498 shares of the investment management company's stock worth $578,000 after buying an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. 71.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

The Goldman Sachs Group Trading Up 0.6 %

The Goldman Sachs Group stock traded up $3.13 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $510.25. The stock had a trading volume of 1,839,064 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,274,769. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $485.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $443.98. The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $289.36 and a 52 week high of $517.26. The stock has a market cap of $164.54 billion, a PE ratio of 19.92, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 15th. The investment management company reported $8.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.52 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $12.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.60 billion. The Goldman Sachs Group had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 9.36%. Analysts forecast that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. will post 36.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The Goldman Sachs Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a $3.00 dividend. This is a positive change from The Goldman Sachs Group's previous quarterly dividend of $2.75. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $12.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.35%. The Goldman Sachs Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on GS shares. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $475.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $360.00 to $373.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of The Goldman Sachs Group from $504.00 to $559.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on The Goldman Sachs Group from $485.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on The Goldman Sachs Group from $461.00 to $464.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $495.94.

Insider Activity at The Goldman Sachs Group

In related news, Director Thomas K. Montag sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.04, for a total transaction of $5,050,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 12,450 shares in the company, valued at $6,287,748. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Thomas K. Montag sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.04, for a total value of $5,050,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 12,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,287,748. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Brian J. Lee sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.99, for a total transaction of $1,770,965.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,119,949.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,013,500 shares of company stock worth $32,181,365 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

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.