The profit of the American bank Goldman Sachs Group in the third quarter of 2023 amounted to $2.1 billion, down 33% compared to the same period a year earlier. Earnings per share ($5.47) beat the expectations of analysts surveyed by Factset, who expected $5.42 per share.
This is the eighth straight quarter in which Goldman has reported a year-over-year decline in profit.
At the same time, revenue amounted to $11.8 billion (-1% in annual terms). This figure also exceeds the expectations of analysts, who forecast revenue at $11.2 billion. writes The Wall Street Journal.
As the newspaper notes, the profit for the quarter reflects the ongoing financial blow that the American bank is experiencing as it abandoned its once-touted consumer lending services. Last week it announced the sale of specialist lender Greensky and offloaded virtually all of its consumer loan balances.
Goldman took several charges that led to a nearly $1 billion decline in pre-tax earnings. Write-downs on legacy investments in its asset management unit totaled $728 million, and Greensky cost another $203 million. Annual return on equity fell 3.1 for the quarter percentage points to 7.1%. However, revenue from Goldman’s investment banking and trading activities was little changed from last year.
