Goldman Sachs (GS.US) Q3 Results Exceed Expectations! Stock trading revenue soared 72% year over year, but fixed income business lagged behind

The Zhitong Finance App learned that before the US stock market on Tuesday, Goldman Sachs (GS.US) released financial results for the third quarter of 2026. According to financial reports, Goldman Sachs Q3 net revenue increased 23.1% year over year to US$18.68 billion, higher than market consensus expectations; net profit of US$5.294 billion, up 29% year on year; and GAAP diluted earnings per share were US$17.01, which was US$3.92 higher than market consensus expectations. The annualized return on common shareholders' equity (ROE) was 18.7%, a significant increase from 14.2% in the same period last year.

The performance was mainly driven by the stock trading business. Goldman Sachs Q3's net revenue from the global banking and marketing business was US$13.458 billion, up 32% year over year. Among them, net revenue from the stock business was US$6.441 billion, an increase of 72% over the previous year.

Fixed income, foreign exchange, and commodities (FICC) became major factors dragging down overall results. The business's net revenue for the quarter was US$3.473 billion, down slightly by about 1% year over year. Not only did it not continue its growth momentum, but there was also a clear gap with market expectations, which was a major drag on the quarter's results.

The investment banking business performed well this quarter, with revenue from all major business segments exceeding market expectations. Investment banking expenses were US$3,224 million, up 21% year over year. Among them, consulting revenue was US$1.65 billion, up 18% year on year, reflecting a recovery in mergers and acquisitions; stock underwriting revenue was US$666 million, slightly exceeding expectations of US$646 million; and bond underwriting revenue was US$904 million, higher than the forecast of US$824 million.

Net revenue from the asset and wealth management business was US$5.51 billion, up 14% year over year. As of September 30, the scale of asset management rose to US$4.097 trillion, an increase of 19% over the same period last year. Goldman Sachs also completed two major acquisitions this quarter to expand its asset management business of more than $4 trillion. The bank acquired exchange-traded fund (ETF) provider NEOS Investments for $2.25 billion and purchased commercial real estate investment agency LCN Capital Partners for up to $410 million.

David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs, said, “In the face of a complex business environment, customers continue to seek world-class consulting, execution and financing support from Goldman Sachs, making this quarter's net revenue ranked second in history, and the cumulative net revenue from the beginning of the year to today reached a record high.”

It is worth mentioning that Goldman Sachs's incentive expenses this quarter increased nearly eight times over the same period last year, reaching 587 million US dollars. According to reports, this portion of revenue is closely related to Goldman Sachs's business involving wealth management clients in SpaceX's early financing arrangements, and the expenses received far exceed its remuneration for providing consulting services for the largest IPO in SpaceX's history.

As of press release, Goldman Sachs's pre-market stock rose more than 3% on Tuesday.