Goldman Sachs Group Inc

Morgan Stanley’s (MS) Investment Management segment reported a 7% increase, bringing total revenues to $751 billion compared to $705 billion in 2Q14.

Frontier’s outlook for 2017 Frontier Communications (FTR) expects moderate improvements in its customer and revenue trends, cost containment, and synergy realization in 2017. It expects synergy realization from the integration of AT&T’s (T) and Verizon’s (VZ) wireline businesses in Connecticut and CTF (California, Texas, and Florida) markets. Frontier completed the acquisition of AT&T’s and Verizon’s […]

Morgan Stanley charges fixed fees and performance fees for asset management services, products and services, and administration of accounts.

Wall Street analysts expect Goldman Sachs to post return on equity (or ROE) of 11.5% in 3Q15. In 3Q14, ROE for Goldman Sachs was 11.8%.

Between December 2014 and December 2016, Baker Hughes (BHI) stock hit its peak in April 2015. It troughed at ~$39 in January 2016.

Goldman Sachs has been cutting costs in recent quarters. In 2016, 2,600 people may have lost their jobs at GS—the highest number since the financial crisis.

Valuations rose by 3.10% in the week ended September 11, 2015. The rise was mainly due to buying in India’s equities on higher industrial production and low inflation.

The US Federal Reserve met on September 16 and 17 in one of the most anticipated monetary policy meetings in recent memory.

Last week, high-grade bond yields rose after upbeat US inflation and retail sales data raised the possibility of a rate hike by the year’s end.

Goldman Sachs derives 16% of its revenues from the investing and lending business. So far, 2016 has been a rough year for the financial sector.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s quarterly report on the health of the US banking industry said that 4Q15 bank earnings rose 11.9% year-over-year.

The Redbook showed some strength in same-store sales during the April 19 week by recording a year-on-year rate of +3.7%.

Tax reform On December 2, 2017, the Senate passed Donald Trump’s tax reform bill, and on December 20, 2017, the House of Representatives passed the bill. Afterwards, the S&P 500 (SPX-INDEX) (SPY) rose to a record high. Richard Bernstein on tax reform In an interview with CNBC, prominent investor Richard Bernstein stated that tax reform could be very helpful for […]

The tech sector’s competitive edge So far in this series, we’ve discussed the potential effects of Trump’s proposed tax reform on prominent tech stocks such as Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), IBM (IBM), and Amazon (AMZN). Tech companies continue to be preferred by investors due to their proprietary technological expertise and large cash balances. Their technical […]

With classic safe havens providing little protection, turn to financials and healthcare sectors for opportunities. Healthcare stocks usually hold up well in the run-up to a rate hike.

Operating margins In 3Q17, Bank of America’s (BAC) non-interest expenses fell sequentially and YoY (year-over-year), reflecting strong operating efficiency. This fall was partially offset by continued investments in technology. The bank’s expenses fell to $13.1 billion in 3Q17, compared with $13.5 billion in 3Q16 and $13.7 billion in 2Q17. Commercial banks (XLF) are focusing on reducing operating spending, targeting huge investments in technology […]

Monetary policy normalization refers to two aspects: the federal funds rate and the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet.

Goldman Sachs (GS) has warned the Markets that iron ore prices will slump below $40 per ton as supply growth outpaces demand.

On September 12, 3M will pay a dividend of ~$1.18 per share. Investors holding the stock on or before the record date of August 25, 2017, are eligible.

The first challenge is that banks are highly regulated and any change in regulations has a huge impact on the valuation of a bank—the second challenge is that it’s difficult to determine cash flow for a bank because both debt and reinvestment are difficult to calculate.

Currently, Citigroup trades at a discount of 40% to its book value. It trades cheaper than peers such as JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Goldman Sachs.

The 13F filings of major institutional asset managers for the second quarter of 2015 offer a gloomy picture for Brazil.

The Fed is targeting one last rate hike in December 2017 to bring the federal funds rate from 1.25% to 1.50%.

Goldman Sachs (GS) is notably still quite bearish on iron ore. The bank cited the recent string of shipment data from Australia to support its view.

EU equities outperformed other major markets in 2015 due to quantitative easing announced by the European Central Bank, a weaker currency, and rising exports.

A negative interest rate policy (or NIRP) may still be a far-fetched idea in the United States, but the Federal Reserve wants banks to prepare for it.

On April 9, the shares of the US tech giant Apple (AAPL) were trading at their highest level in the last 21 weeks.

Social media Snapchat’s (SNAP) shares fell 18.5% in the week ended March 10 to close at $22.07. But the stock rose 44% on March 2, the day of its IPO.

We explored the most commonly used valuation metric for financial companies—the price-book value. We also understood the relation between price-book value and return on equity.

Banks with significant exposure to the United Kingdom and the European Union are the riskiest investments in a post-Brexit environment.

Chevron and ExxonMobil stocks have provided almost flat returns in the current quarter. As a result, Goldman Sachs favors Chevron over ExxonMobil.

Teva stock has gained ~27.0% year-to-date on the back of the positive news that included product launches and study data.

As the economy expands creating inflationary pressures, the Fed raises the Fed funds rate to control inflation.

Shares of Frontier Communications (FTR) rose 20.7% last week (ended May 19, 2017). The stock has been in a downward spiral for the past 12 months.

Buckeye Partners’ (BPL) outlook looks positive from a long-term investment standpoint. At a broader level, ~54% of analysts rate Buckeye Partners as “hold.”

For the first time in two years, in November, iron ore prices crossed the $80 per ton level, and YTD gains for the steel-making commodity have reached 82%.

On November 30, Baker Hughes, CSL Capital Management, and West Street Energy Partners have agreed to form a land-based pressure pumping company BJ Services.

Approximately 35% of analysts tracking ExxonMobil rate it a “buy” or some equivalent. Approximately 54% rate the company a “hold” or an equivalent, while 11% of the analysts recommend a “sell.”

The share of primary dealer bids rose slightly. An increase in the percentage of primary dealer bids is a sign of weaker fundamental market demand.

Morgan Stanley’s 2Q16 earnings beat analysts’ estimates, as the bank reported considerably lower legal expenses.

International cable company Liberty Global (LBTYA) is a new 0.25% position initiated by Berkshire Hathaway in 4Q. Liberty Global operates in 14 countries, including 12 European countries.

Approximately 61% of analysts rate Pioneer Natural Resources as a “buy,” ~30% rate the company a “hold,” and 9% of the analysts recommend a “sell.”

Now let’s look at Wall Street analysts’ forecasts for BP following its 2Q15 earnings release.

It’s important to note that ~69% of analysts tracking EOG Resources rate it a “buy” or some equivalent, while ~24% rate the company a “hold.”

Bond underwriting exposure could be risky for investment banking departments, as interest rates begin to rise and refinancing slows.

The economic make-up of the US has changed significantly over the past century, making the Dow Theory less applicable today than it might once have been.

Twitter’s management changes came after its disastrous 1Q15 earnings. Twitter missed its own revenue growth estimate for 1Q15 and even lowered its outlook.

During GoPro’s 4Q16 earnings call, the firm stated that it wants to make GoPro products central to the smartphone experience.

Goldman Sachs (GS) believes Yandex (YNDX) will show a strong performance in the near future.

Bridgewater isn’t alone in believing that most US companies (QQQ) are experiencing peak margins.

Goldman Sachs estimated that Facebook’s annual sales growth could improve by 32% from 2016 to 2019.

At the end of 4Q15, the fund had an overall market beta of zero compared to the beta of 0.04 of its benchmark Morningstar Managed Futures Category Average.

Flows into investment-grade bond funds were positive for the week ending on October 14 after witnessing four consecutive weeks of outflows.

Among the downstream solar companies, SolarCity (SCTY) has the highest EV-to-sales value of 8.70x, which is closely followed by Vivint Solar at 8.31x.

Investment-grade bond yields usually follow cues from the Treasuries market. With a fall in Treasury yields, investment-grade corporate bond yields also fell.

Cybersecurity firm FireEye saw the value of its shares rise 14.5% last week after investment bank Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to a “buy.”

Morgan Stanley (MS) is trading at a forward PE ratio of 9.6x, which is ~16% lower than its five-year average PE ratio.

IBM (IBM) recently announced that it would be building a blockchain-based platform—the basis of bitcoin currency—for seven prominent European.

Financial-sector companies such as Bank of America (BAC), U.S. Bancorp (USB), and BlackRock (BLK) shared the spotlight on July 15.

Highfields Capital exited a position in Exxon Mobil that accounted for 1.67% of the fund’s 1Q14 (or the first quarter of 2014) portfolio.

Investors lost confidence due to the uncertainty surrounding the vote, which led to the expectation of the other member nations’ following in the United Kingdom’s footsteps.

Here we’ll discuss Wall Street analyst recommendations for CVX following its 3Q15 results. Wall Street analysts provided target prices for the next 12 months.

The MSCI Europe Index was valued at 14.9x on a one-year forward earnings basis in the week ending July 31, 2015. Valuations rose by 0.71% that week.

Goldman Sachs ranked first in worldwide announced and completed mergers and acquisitions so far in 2015.

All banks face risks. Two key areas to understand are banks’ market risk and reputational risk. Here’s a summary of each type.

Banks experience operational risk in all daily bank activities, such as a check incorrectly cleared or a wrong order punched into a trading terminal.

Highfields Capital initiated a new position in Eli Lilly and Company that accounts for 2.13% of the fund’s 2Q14 (or second quarter of 2014) portfolio.

In June 2016, Beijing’s (FXI) Chinese Intellectual Property Office ordered Apple (AAPL) to stop selling its iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus models in China.

Economists Zach Pandl and Daan Struyven from Goldman Sachs believe the March 2016 monetary policy statement released by the FOMC was one of the most dovish of this century.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) stock fell 3.1% in pre-market trading today after the company reported its second-quarter results.

J.P. Morgan (JPM) advises corporates on fundraising, strategic transactions across countries, and trading activities under its corporate and investment banking division.

Though the US reported a budget deficit in May, its financial position was better than it had been in the previous year. Yet a budget deficit has no direct impact on companies or ETFs.

Like IBM (IBM), Oracle (ORCL) aims to lure investors through share buybacks and dividends.

Primary dealer takedown was lower due to higher market demand. It was 36% of competitive accepted bids—down from 38.5% in February’s auction.

Revenues from Deutsche Bank’s Corporate and Investment banking unit fell by 12% in 2Q16. Revenues from its Global Markets business fell by 28%.

Analysts expect Goldman Sachs to post 1Q16 EPS of $2.48, which is 45% lower than the corresponding period last year.

European equities rose as the ECB’s president hinted at further stimulus for the European economy amid falling commodities and a slowing global economy.

As the Fed targets higher interest rates, credit offtake could be further dampened, partially offset by the Trump administration’s push for domestic manufacturing.

CIB’s expenses fell 3% on a year-over-year basis to ~$4.8 billion, mostly due to lower employee compensation.

Goldman Sachs’s earnings per share (or EPS) is expected to be $5.12 for the quarter, higher than the $1.98 reported in 2Q15 and the $4.69 reported in 3Q14.

Yields on US sovereigns fell in the week ended March 13. Along with Treasury yields, corporate bond yields also fell.

BlackRock benefited the most from the money in motion due to macro factors. Fixed income ETFs in 4Q14 attracted almost half of the total new funds in 2014.

Citigroup (C) has managed an improved performance through investment banking, private banking, and securities services revenues.

The upcoming earnings season can help you understand whether the markets will see prolonged consolidation or upward movement from existing valuations.

On June 2, 2016, Jefferies downgraded Newmont Mining (NEM) from “buy” to “hold” due to a near-term price risk from gold and its relatively higher valuation following its strong price performance year-to-date.

Since July, investors have withdrawn $639 million from the iShares China Large-Cap ETF (FXI).

JPMorgan Chase’s 1Q16 earnings beat investors’ expectations. Loan growth and credit quality improved despite weakness from the investment banking business.

Wall Street analysts expect JPMorgan Chase to post sales of $30.3 billion in the second quarter. The estimate represents growth of 2.5% YoY.

Goldman Sachs upped its gold price forecasts. The bank lifted its three, six, and 12-month target prices to $1,800, $1,900, and $2,000 per ounce.

David Kostin of Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) is bullish on the tech sector. The sector has outperformed the broader markets this year.

Warren Buffett’s stock market actions speak louder than words. Berkshire Hathaway’s (NYSE:BRK.B) chairman has been on a selling spree.

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.B) released its first-quarter 13F on May 15 after the markets closed. Chairman Warren Buffett has been on a selling spree.

JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) reported lower-than-expected first-quarter numbers today. Higher provisions weighed on the bank’s profitability.