Goldman Sachs (GS) Q3 2026: Equities Lift GAAP EPS 39%

Goldman Sachs (GS) reported third-quarter 2026 earnings under US accounting rules (GAAP) of $17.01 per diluted share, up 39% on a year earlier. Equities, the business that trades shares for clients and lends to them, supplied most of the rise in revenue.

Goldman shares opened 3.2% higher on 13 October 2026, the day of the results. They gave up that gain and closed 0.2% lower at $891.91.

Goldman published its results in a press release attached to a Form 8-K before the US open on 13 October 2026. Net revenues rose 23% to $18.68 billion. GAAP net earnings were $5.29 billion.

GAAP diluted earnings per share were $17.01, against $12.25 a year earlier. Diluted figures also count shares that could still be issued, such as employee share awards. The figure fell 19% from $20.98 in the second quarter.

Equities net revenues were $6.44 billion, up 72%. That supplied 77% of the rise in net revenues from a year earlier.

Investment banking fees rose 21% to $3.22 billion. Advisory revenue reached a record $1.65 billion. Goldman says its backlog of investment banking fees fell from the end of June.

Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities (FICC) net revenues were $3.47 billion, close to a year earlier.

Asset & Wealth Management net revenues rose 14% to $5.05 billion.

Platform Solutions, the consumer unit that holds the Apple Card, had net revenues of $170 million, down 72%. Goldman has classed the Apple Card loans as held for sale, meaning it expects to sell them. It blames markdowns, cuts in their book value, for the fall.

Goldman says a charitable contribution of about $450 million cut GAAP earnings per share by about $1.00.

Equities and Advisory led the rise in net revenues. FICC intermediation, the trading side of FICC, fell 33% from the second quarter.

Goldman opened at $923.00, 3.2% above the 12 October close of $893.95. The shares closed at $891.91, down 0.2% on the day.

That close was 22.2% below the 15 July 2026 closing high of $1,146.35, adjusted for dividends.

The dashed line marks 13 October, the day of the results. The bars below the price show shares traded each day. Blue bars mark days the close rose, red bars days it fell.

A moving average is the mean closing price over a set number of days. The 13 October close was 9.2% below the 50-day average of $982.68. It was 6.4% below the 200-day average of $952.63.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) runs from 0 to 100. It compares gains with losses over the last 14 days. Goldman's RSI stood at 34.1, close to the lower reference line at 30.

The grey bars on the right show how many shares traded at each price, called the volume profile. The busiest band was $910 to $930. The 13 October close sat below it.

This chart zooms in on the last three months. Each candle is one day. The thick body runs from the open to the close. The thin line spans the day's high and low. Green means the shares closed above their open, red below.

On 13 October the shares traded above $930 at their peak. They then fell to a low of $891.01. The close was 3.4% below the open. The candle is red because the shares closed below their open.

Goldman's annualised GAAP return on equity (ROE), its profit as a share of shareholders' money, was 18.7%. It was 23.5% in the second quarter.

GAAP book value per share, the shareholders' equity behind each share, rose 1.4% in the quarter to $372.64. At the 13 October close of $891.91 the shares traded at 2.39 times that figure.

Over the last four quarters Goldman earned $69.57 per diluted share on a GAAP basis. That is $14.01 in the fourth quarter of 2025 plus $55.56 in the first nine months of 2026. The 13 October close is 12.8 times that figure. Goldman says tax benefits on employee share awards added about $3.20 to the nine-month figure.

Goldman returned $4.49 billion to shareholders, including $3.00 billion of buybacks. That bought 2.9 million shares at an average of $1,048.73. The 13 October close was 15.0% below that average.

The board declared a $5.00 quarterly dividend. Four such payments come to $20.00 a year, or 2.2% of the 13 October close.

Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital is a bank's core loss-absorbing capital. Goldman's CET1 ratio fell to 12.4% of risk-weighted assets under standardised rules, from 12.9% at the end of June. Risk-weighted assets are a bank's assets scaled by how risky they are.

Goldman's CET1 requirement is 11.4%, so the buffer above it is 1.0 percentage point.

In the results presentation, chief executive David Solomon said: "I am confident our market-leading franchises, deep relationships and continued investments will help drive long-term earnings growth."

The dividend goes to shareholders of record on 2 December 2026. Goldman pays it on 30 December 2026.

Goldman lifted GAAP earnings per share by 39% on a year earlier, led by Equities. The shares still closed 0.2% lower on results day, after opening 3.2% higher.

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Goldman Sachs earned $17.01 per diluted share on a GAAP basis in the third quarter of 2026. That was 39% more than the $12.25 a year earlier. GAAP net earnings were $5.29 billion. Net revenues rose 23% to $18.68 billion, with Equities net revenues up 72% to $6.44 billion.

Goldman pays $5.00 per share each quarter. The board raised it from $4.50 in July 2026. The next payment is on 30 December 2026 to shareholders of record on 2 December 2026. Four quarterly payments come to $20.00 a year. Dividends cost Goldman $1.49 billion in the third quarter.

Goldman is handing the Apple Card programme to a new issuer. Goldman disclosed the agreement on 7 January 2026 and expects the move to take about 24 months. The card loans are held for sale. Platform Solutions net revenues fell 72% to $170 million in the third quarter of 2026. Goldman blames markdowns on the card loans.

DISCLAIMER: This article is strictly educational. Any information or analysis in this note is not an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities. Nothing in this note is intended to be investment advice and nor should it be relied upon to make investment decisions. Any opinions, analyses, or probabilities expressed in this note are those of the author as of the note's date of publication and are subject to change without notice.