Goldman Sachs reported third-quarter results on Tuesday, October 13, before the market opened. Net earnings: $5.29 billion, or $17.01 a share - up 29% and 39% from the same quarter a year ago. Revenue rose 23% to $18.68 billion, the second-highest for a single quarter, according to the bank. The quarter also carried an expense of about $450 million for charitable contributions, which cut earnings per share by about $1.00.
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What was reported
| Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net revenues | 18,679 | 15,184 | +23.0% |
| Net interest income | 3,770 | 3,852 | -2.1% |
| Non-interest revenues | 14,909 | 11,332 | +31.6% |
| Expenses | 11,308 | 9,453 | +19.6% |
| Provision for credit losses | 368 | 339 | +8.6% |
| Net earnings | 5,294 | 4,098 | +29.2% |
| Diluted EPS (dollars) | 17.01 | 12.25 | +38.9% |
| Diluted shares (millions) | 301.1 | 315.0 | -4.4% |
| Return on equity (ROE) | 18.7% | 14.2% | +4.5 pp |
| Standardized CET1 ratio | 12.4% | 14.4% | -2.0 pp |
In millions of dollars, except per-share amounts, share counts and ratios. Percentage changes were recalculated from the reported figures. Source: the bank's earnings release and presentation, October 13, 2026, and comparative figures from its 2025 reports. The quarter's 10-Q has not yet been filed, so some figures are preliminary.
Against the second quarter the numbers are lower: revenue fell 8.2% (from $20.34 billion), net earnings fell 20.1% (from $6.63 billion) and diluted EPS fell 18.9% (from $20.98).
Where the money was made
Equities trading was the engine of the quarter: revenue rose 72.4% to $6.44 billion, from $3.74 billion a year ago. Financing reached a record $3.365 billion, up 96%, and intermediation rose 52% to $3.076 billion. Against the previous quarter, equities revenue fell 13.1%, from $7.42 billion.
Fixed income, currencies and commodities trading (FICC) stayed nearly where it was: $3.47 billion, down 0.6% from a year ago and 24.4% from the previous quarter ($4.59 billion). Intermediation fell 7% to $2.26 billion, and financing rose 14% to $1.21 billion.
Investment banking fees rose 21.3% to $3.22 billion. Advisory fees reached a record $1.65 billion, up 17.8%; equity underwriting rose 43.2% to $666 million, and debt underwriting rose 14.7% to $904 million. Against the previous quarter, investment banking fees fell 5.0%, from $3.395 billion.
The investment banking backlog fell from the end of the second quarter, and slightly from the end of 2025; the bank did not disclose its size. According to CNBC, the CEO said on the call with analysts that the backlog remains very strong. The release and the presentation contain no quantified guidance for the fourth quarter.
Asset and wealth management, and Apple Card
Asset and wealth management revenue rose 14.3% to $5.05 billion. Management fees reached a record $3.587 billion, up 21.9%, and assets under supervision reached a record $4.10 trillion. Incentive fees rose to $587 million, from $76 million a year ago.
On the other side, investment revenue fell to $50 million, from $342 million, and private banking and lending fell to $827 million, from $1,057 million. According to the bank, investments were affected by net markdowns in debt investments, against markups a year ago; the year-ago base also included interest on a previously impaired loan.
The Global Banking & Markets segment brought in $13.46 billion, up 32.4%. The Platform Solutions segment, which includes the Apple Card (held for sale), brought in $170 million, down 71.6%, and posted a pre-tax loss of $95 million. According to the bank, net markdowns on the Apple Card weighed on the segment.
Expenses, the donation and tax
The quarter includes an expense of about $450 million for charitable contributions by Goldman Sachs Gives. According to the presentation, after tax it cut earnings per share by about $1.00, and return on equity and on tangible equity by about 1.1 percentage points each. Without it, earnings per share would have been about $18.01.
Expenses rose 19.6% to $11.31 billion, more slowly than revenue, so the efficiency ratio improved to 60.5%, from 62.3% a year ago. For the nine months it stands at 59.4%, against 62.1%. Compensation rose 9.4% to $5.12 billion, and transaction-based expenses rose 53.5% to $3.02 billion.
The provision for credit losses reached $368 million, against $339 million a year ago and $102 million in the previous quarter, mainly for impairments on wholesale loans. Net charge-offs were $154 million, an annualized rate of 0.3%. Litigation provisions fell to $23 million, from $131 million.
The tax rate in the quarter was 24.4%, and 20.4% for the nine months, against 18.5% in the first half. The tax benefit related to share awards to employees came to about $975 million for the nine months, and added about $3.20 to earnings per share.
For the nine months, revenue reached $56.24 billion, up 25.5%, and diluted earnings per share reached $55.56, up 48.8%. Return on tangible equity for the period: 22.4%.
Capital, and returns to shareholders
The bank returned $4.49 billion to shareholders in the quarter: a share buyback of $3.00 billion - 2.9 million shares at an average price of $1,048.73 - and dividends of $1.49 billion. In the previous quarter it returned $5.36 billion, and a year ago $3.25 billion. The average buyback price was higher than the closing price on the report day, $891.91. The diluted share count fell 4.4%, to 301.1 million.
The standardized CET1 ratio fell to 12.4%, from 12.9% in the previous quarter and 14.4% a year ago. The ratio under the advanced approach is 13.6%, and the supplementary leverage ratio is 4.3%. The dividend declared for the fourth quarter: $5.00 a share, unchanged from the previous quarter (the raise from $4.50 came in July), and up 25% from the $4.00 declared a year ago. Also in the presentation: two announced deals, NEOS Investments and LCN Capital Partners.
David Solomon, chairman and CEO, said that clients "continued to turn to Goldman Sachs for our world-class advice, execution and financing capabilities." In his words, clients leaned on the bank in a complicated environment, and he expects earnings growth over the long term.
Versus expectations, and the stock
According to LSEG data published by CNBC, analysts expected earnings of $13.02 a share and revenue of $16.71 billion. The reported earnings are 30.6% higher, and revenue is 11.8% higher. Earnings per share without the effect of the donation, about $18.01, are also above expectations. According to CNBC, equities trading beat estimates by about $1.42 billion and investment banking fees by $384 million, while FICC came in $239 million below estimates. Estimates differ slightly between data providers.
The stock opened on the report day at $923.00, about 3.2% above the previous close ($893.95), but the gain was erased during the session: it closed at $891.91, down 0.23%, near the low of the day. From the start of the year to the report day the stock rose about 1.5% (against the December 31, 2025 close, $879.00).
הזווית שלי
דעה אישית של אילן אברמוב - לא ייעוץ ולא המלצה
What stops me in this report is the gap between the report and the reaction. Earnings per share 30.6% above estimates, revenue 11.8% above, and the stock closed lower - after opening more than 3% higher.
There are two ways to read it. One: the quarter is strong, but it leans on equities trading, an activity that moves from quarter to quarter - it rose 72.4% from a year ago and fell 13.1% from the previous quarter - and investors may have looked at what sits below the top line: a smaller investment banking backlog, FICC down 24.4% from the previous quarter, and a CET1 ratio that fell to 12.4% from 14.4% in a year, while the bank bought stock at an average of $1,048.73. The other: the report is far broader than one trading desk - record advisory fees, record management fees, record assets under supervision and an improving efficiency ratio - and a one-day reaction says little about the quarter itself. Both readings rest on the same numbers.
(To be clear: this is my personal opinion only. Nothing here is a recommendation to take any action, and there is no forecast here of the price of any security.)
Ilan Abramov, the author, or anyone on his behalf may hold some of the securities or funds mentioned in this article.
