Goldman Sachs reported second-quarter earnings of $3.72 billion, or $10.91 per share, surpassing analyst expectations as its trading and investment banking divisions delivered strong results. The Wall Street giant's profit rose 22% from the same period a year earlier, with total revenue climbing 15% to $14.58 billion, exceeding the $13.47 billion consensus forecast compiled by LSEG.
The earnings beat was fueled primarily by a surge in equities trading, which generated $4.3 billion in revenue, a 36% year-over-year increase and $650 million above estimates. Fixed income trading also contributed, with revenue rising 9% to $3.47 billion-$190 million higher than expected-as clients repositioned amid heightened market volatility linked to President Donald Trump's evolving trade and tariff policy.
"Our strong results for the quarter reflected healthy client activity levels across our businesses, our differentiated franchise positions and the talent and commitment of our people," Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said in a statement. He added, "At this time, the economy and markets are generally responding positively to the evolving policy environment. But as developments rarely unfold in a straight line, we remain very focused on risk management."
Investment banking revenue reached $2.19 billion, up 26% from a year ago and well above analyst estimates. Stephen Biggar, director of financial services research at Argus Research, noted, "The well-above consensus rise in investment banking was (a surprise), with a lot of analysts snookered into thinking that macro uncertainty would hold back this line item more than it did."
Goldman's asset and wealth management division was the only notable underperformer in the quarter, posting $3.78 billion in revenue, down 3% year-over-year and $100 million below expectations. The firm cited lower gains on private equity and debt investments.
Its platform solutions arm, the smallest of the firm's four business segments, reported $685 million in revenue, a 2% increase from a year earlier and roughly $12 million above estimates.
Goldman's shares, which have surged 23% this year ahead of the earnings release, continued to outperform peers as Wall Street's trading engines showed renewed strength. Other major banks-including JPMorgan, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Morgan Stanley-also topped estimates this week, with Bank of America standing as the only major lender to fall short on revenue.
