Goldman 2Q profit tops forecast on strong trading revenue

Goldman Sachs’ says second-quarter profit topped Wall Street’s expectations thanks to strong results from its investment banking and trading businesses

NEW YORK — Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s second-quarter profit blew past Wall Street’s expectations thanks to strong results from its investment banking and trading businesses.

Goldman reported second-quarter earnings of $2.25 billion, or $6.26 per share. The average estimate of six analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $3.97 per share.

The investment bank posted revenue of $15.39 billion in the period. Its revenue net of interest expense was $13.3 billion, which also topped Street forecasts. Three analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $10.07 billion.

The investment banking division posted record revenue of $2.66 billion, helped by revenue from underwriting stocks and debt securities. In addition, revenue from trading stocks, bonds, commodities and currencies was the strongest in about a decade, Goldman said.

Goldman shares rose 5% in premarket trading. The shares have fallen almost 7% since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has declined 1%. The shares have risen 1% in the last 12 months.

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Portions of this story were generated by Automated Insights using data from Zacks Investment Research.