Goldman Profit Drops 70%, Still Beats Estimates

Revenue cut by half, but firm helped by less mortgage exposure
By Clay Dillow,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 16, 2008 8:37 AM CDT
Goldman Profit Drops 70%, Still Beats Estimates
The building on Broad Street in New York's Financial District that houses brokerage firm Goldman Sachs is shown in this June 12, 2007 file photo.   (AP Photo/Richard Drew, file)

Amid the financial industry's meltdown, survivor Goldman Sachs reported that third-quarter profit plunged by 70% —the sharpest decline in its history as a public company, but still enough to beat estimates of $1.71 per share. The bank dipped 7% in New York trading, Bloomberg reports, after reporting an income decline of $1.81 per share to $845 million. Year-earlier income was $2.85 billion.

Goldman’s shares dipped 12% yesterday after the Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch shakeups. Although in better financial health than those banks, Goldman has watched shares drop 37% this year as the sector reels from the mortgage crisis. Along with Morgan Stanley, Goldman is one of two large independent investment banks left, and still needs to unload some of its non-liquid assets to boost investor confidence.
(More Goldman Sachs stories.)

Get breaking news in your inbox.
What you need to know, as soon as we know it.
Sign up
Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X