What to Expect When Goldman Sachs Reports Earnings

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) is scheduled to report its third-quarter financial results before the markets open on Tuesday. Thomson Reuters has consensus estimates of $3.79 in earnings per share (EPS) and $7.42 billion in revenue. The same period of last year reportedly had $2.90 in EPS on $6.86 billion in revenue.

Due to its heavily regulated, too big to fail bank holding company status, Goldman remains a laggard. It still has a weight in the Dow of close to 6% at its current share price. That makes it barely the second highest Dow stock by weighting, and therefore the second most important Dow stock in propping up this index.

The firm might not be regulated quite as harshly as banks in the years ahead, but that remains to be seen. Much still is unknown about future regulations and how the financials are treated by the future administrations.

The $72.5 billion Goldman Sachs market cap could go higher without much buying pressure needed, and it screens out as being valued at less than one times book value and less than 10 times expected 2017 earnings.

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A few analysts weighed in on Goldman Sachs before the company reported earnings:

• Barclays reiterated an Equal Weight rating with a $210 price target.
• Citigroup has a Buy rating with a $195 price target.
• Nomura reiterated a Buy rating with a $197 price target.
• JPMorgan has a Buy rating with a $176 price target.
• Oppenheimer has a Buy rating with a $222 price target.
• BMO Capital Markets reiterated an Outperform rating with a $214 price target.

So far in 2016, Goldman Sachs has underperformed the broad markets, with the stock down about 4%. Over the past 52 weeks, the stock is actually down about 6%.

Shares of Goldman Sachs were trading at $170.00 on Monday, with a consensus analyst price target of $182.80 and a 52-week trading range of $138.20 to $199.90.

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