Strong quarter for Wall Street lifts Goldman

>> Goldman Sachs said it saw a double digit rise in its first quarter profits on Monday, lifted broadly by the stock and bond markets’ performances in the first months of the year.

The strong quarter comes after Goldman struggled most of 2023 as higher interest rates put a pause on companies doing deals and mergers. But as executives have adjusted to the new normal and interest rates appear to be heading lower, Goldman has benefitted from the change in attitude.

The New York-based investment bank posted a profit of $4.13 billion, up 28% from a year earlier. The company earned $11.67 a share for the quarter, well above analysts expectations.

Most of Goldman’s underlying businesses had a strong quarterly performance. Investment banking fees were up 32% in the quarter at $2.08 billion. The bank said most of the growth was driven in debt underwriting, likely as a result of higher interest rates requiring companies to refinance their bonds and debt.

Trading in Goldman’s fixed income, currencies and commodities department rose 10% in the quarter, with revenues of $4.32 billion. Stock trading revenues were also up 10%.

In Goldman’s asset management business, where the bank manages money for the wealthy and large companies and foundations, revenues were up 18%.

Goldman’s return on equity, a measure how well an investment bank does with its underlying assets, was 14.8% on an annualized basis. Banks like Goldman typically want to keep this metric above 10%.

Shares of Goldman Sachs were up more than 3% in morning trading.