CEO David Solomon highlighted Goldman Sachs’ client relationships and long-term growth plans as the firm reported higher year-over-year revenue and earnings in the third quarter.
- Goldman Sachs reported revenue of $18.68 billion and diluted EPS of $17.01, topping Fiscal AI estimates of $17.92 billion and $14.84, respectively.
- Equities revenue surged 72% year over year to $6.44 billion, while Global Banking & Markets revenue rose 32% to $13.46 billion.
- Goldman returned $4.49 billion to common shareholders during the quarter. Its investment banking fee backlog declined from the previous quarter and was slightly lower than at the end of 2025.
Goldman Sachs (GS) on Tuesday reported better-than-expected third-quarter results, with strong growth in its equities business helping lift revenue and earnings above estimates.
The bank reported revenue of $18.68 billion and diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $17.01, beating Fiscal AI estimates of $17.92 billion and $14.84, respectively.
The stock was trading 3% higher at the time of writing.
Solomon Highlights Client Relationships And Long-Term Growth
David Solomon, chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs, said clients continued to turn to the firm for its advice, execution and financing capabilities, despite a complicated operating environment.
“Notwithstanding the current complexity and uncertainty in the world, we remain very well positioned to continue to deliver for our clients,” Solomon said.
He added that Goldman’s market-leading franchises, deep relationships and continued investments would help drive long-term earnings growth. Solomon also added that it was the firm’s second-highest quarterly net revenue. It posted a record net revenue for the first nine months of the year.
Equities Leads Business Growth
Equities revenue reached $6.44 billion, up 72% from a year earlier. Fixed income, currencies and commodities (FICC) revenue was $3.47 billion, essentially unchanged year over year.
Global Banking & Markets revenue increased 32% to $13.46 billion. Investment banking fees rose 21% to $3.22 billion, while Asset & Wealth Management revenue grew 14% to $5.05 billion.
Goldman Sachs said its investment banking fee backlog decreased from the end of Q2 and decreased slightly from the end of 2025.
Profitability And Expenses
Goldman reported an annualized return on common equity of 18.7% for the quarter. Its efficiency ratio for the first nine months of 2026 was 59.4%, compared with 62.1% in the same period last year.
Operating expenses rose 20% year over year to $11.31 billion, but declined 3% from Q2.
The firm returned $4.49 billion to common shareholders during the quarter, including $3 billion in share repurchases and $1.49 billion in dividends. Goldman also declared a quarterly dividend of $5 per share, payable Dec. 30, 2026.
How Retail Views GS
Retail sentiment on Stocktwits climbed to ‘extremely bullish’ from ‘bullish’ a day earlier, while message volume remained ‘high’ over the past 24 hours. GS was also among Stocktwits’ trending tickers at the time of writing.
One Stocktwits user said they had added GS to their watchlist through year-end, citing an anticipated Anthropic IPO announcement in the coming weeks.
Another bullish user called GS the “most oversold ticker” in its sector and said the stock needed a 5%–10% rebound during the day.
GS shares have dropped over 1% year-to-date.