Jan 18 (Reuters) – Goldman Sachs Group on Tuesday reported a nearly 13% drop in fourth-quarter profit, which came in below expectations as weak trading activity overshadowed a year exceptional in M&A for Wall Street’s leading investment bank.
In New York, Goldman Sachs shares fell 3% in pre-market transactions.
Earnings from trading activity declined in the last three months of the year as the recovery in the global economy translated into less volatility in financial markets.
The global markets division, which includes trading activity and accounts for around a third of the bank’s income, saw its income fall by 7% to nearly four billion dollars.
In contrast, Goldman Sachs reported a 45% rise in investment banking revenue to $3.8 billion in the quarter, boosted by record commissions on advice on acquisitions, IPOs stock market and SPAC launches.
Net income applicable to common shareholders fell to $3.81 billion (€3.35 billion) for the quarter ended Dec. 31, from $4.36 billion for the same period a year earlier.
Earnings per share came to $10.81, versus $12.08 a year earlier.
Analysts on average had expected quarterly earnings of $11.76 per share, according to Refinitiv data. (Reporting Noor Zainab Hussain, Niket Nishant and Anirban Sen in Bangalore and Matt Scuffham in New York; French version Dina Kartit, editing by Blandine Hénault)