Goldman Sachs Tops Estimates With Lower Earnings

by Christopher Freeburn | July 17, 2012 12:05 pm

Investment powerhouse Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS[1]) reported on Tuesday[2] that its second-quarter net income fell 11% to $962 million, compared to the same time last year.

Revenue declined 9% to $6.63 billion from last year. EPS for the quarter was $1.78. Those numbers beat Wall Street, which had expected EPS of $1.16 on revenue of $6.3 billion, CNNMoney noted.

Shares of Goldman Sachs rose fractionally in Tuesday trading.

CEO Lloyd Blankfein noted that worries over a slowing worldwide economy and, in particular, Europe’s ongoing economic woes, had contributed to lower investment activity.

The firm recorded expenses for the quarter down 23% from the prior year to $5.2 billion.

Salaries and bonuses also were trimmed by 9% to $2.92 billion, partly due to staff reductions of 9% from 2011. Average compensation per employee dipped from $237,000 during the first half of last year to $226,000 during the first half of 2012.

JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM[3]) and Citigroup (NYSE:C[4]) reported earnings that topped analysts expectations[5] over the last week, while Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC[6]) reported quarterly results in line with expectations[7].

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