Business
Goldman Sachs bond traders stumbled as Wall Street rivals thrived: ‘A fire is being lit under’ them
David Solomon, CEO Goldman Sachs, speaking on CNBC’s Squawk Box at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Jan. 22nd, 2026.
Oscar Molina | CNBC
When Goldman Sachs executives were asked about disappointing results in the firm’s fixed income division this week, they made it sound as though the trading environment was simply not in their favor.
Fixed income revenue fell 10% in the first quarter, coming in $910 million below analysts’ expectations, according to StreetAccount data. It was an unusually large miss for one of Goldman’s flagship Wall Street businesses.
“It was basically just a function of the overall environment making markets,” CFO Denis Coleman told an analyst on Monday after the bank’s earning report. “We remain actively engaged with clients, but our performance in rates and mortgages was relatively lower.”
But as nearly all of Goldman’s rivals, including JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup, posted blockbuster results for first-quarter fixed income in the days that followed, one thing became clear to Wall Street: Goldman Sachs’ vaunted fixed income traders had underperformed.
JPMorgan saw fixed income trading revenue jump 21% to $7.1 billion, the bank’s second-biggest haul ever. Morgan Stanley, where fixed income is less a priority than equities, posted a 29% jump in the bond business. Citigroup saw bond trading revenue jump 13% to $5.2 billion.
Since before the 2008 financial crisis, when Lloyd Blankfein led Goldman Sachs, the firm’s fixed income division had been the envy of Wall Street. Goldman was known for its trading prowess, a reputation forged in periods of dislocation when its desks generated outsized gains. The bank’s identity as a trader’s firm — one expected to outperform in turbulent times — has endured in the decade-plus since.
That makes the first-quarter stumble particularly notable.
“It seems that something went wrong at Goldman in fixed income,” said veteran Wells Fargo analyst Mike Mayo, who called the bank’s results “worst-in-class.”
“I’d imagine that at Goldman, a fire is being lit under the traders, managers and risk overseers in FICC after such an underperformance,” Mayo said in an interview with CNBC, using an acronym standing for fixed income, currencies and commodities, the formal name for that business.
The prevailing theory is that Goldman was caught offsides on trades tied to interest rates in the first quarter, according to several market participants who asked for anonymity to speak candidly.
That’s because of the positioning that many Wall Street firms had at the start of this year, when markets were expecting the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates at least twice in 2026, these people said.
But after the price of oil surged with the advent of the Iran war, roiling expectations for inflation, the markets began pricing those cuts out, with some investors even bracing for the possibility of rate hikes this year.
Fixed income was the sole blemish on a quarter in which Goldman Sachs exceeded expectations handily, thanks to the firm’s equities traders and investment bankers. Despite the earnings beat, the firm’s shares dropped as much as about 4% on Monday following the report.
Goldman Sachs declined to comment. But on Monday, CEO David Solomon sought to put the quarter’s performance into context:
“When I look at the scale and the diversity of the business, it’s performing very, very well,” Solomon said during the company’s conference call. “Some quarters, it’s going to be stronger here, stronger there.”
Business
Pine Labs, Groww & more: Top stocks to watch on April 16 – The Times of India
Citigroup initiated its coverage of Pine Labs with a buy rating and a target price of Rs 235. Analysts said that India’s payments fintech is on a monetization improvement trajectory, with leading players increasingly entrenched in respective core areas of leadership. While product, services and distribution build-outs into comprehensive plays will continue across the fintech ecosystem, large players don’t face significant disruption risks owing to: Across-the-board profitability push; rising regulatory costs and compliance requirements; and stickiness borne out of integration into enterprise business workflows. Further, while consumer payments have seen flux in competitive positioning in the past decade, there have been relatively fewer changes in positioning and leadership within segments in merchant payments.BoFA Securities has initiated its coverage of Groww (Billionbrains Garage Ventures) with a buy rating and a target price of Rs 235. Analysts said Groww is well positioned to capitalize on India’s retail investing tailwinds and they expect compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) for revenue at 30% over FY26-FY28. The company produces best-in-class profitability with further upside from operating leverage. Analysts have valued Groww at 39x FY28E price-to-earnings. They, however, said that the near-term risks for the stock are a weak capital market performance and the expiry of the six-month lock-in of shares post-IPO.Elara Capital initiated its coverage of Jindal Saw with a buy rating and a target price of Rs 280. Analysts said earnings recovery is expected over FY27–FY28, driven by water, and oil & gas demand. The company’s order book is at an all-time high, indicating strong visibility. They also feel Jal Jeevan Mission spending revival to drive domestic pipe demand, while the global pipeline capex is supported by energy security concerns. Analysts also pointed out that exports are rising, with diversification reducing dependence on domestic capex. The company’s capacity expansion to support margins and operating leverage. They feel the stock’s valuations are attractive, with rerating potential driven by execution and growth.Jefferies has downgraded Indus Towers to underperform from buy with a target price cut to Rs 375 from Rs 530. Analysts downgrade the stock due to site-renewal risks bunched up over second half of 2026 (H2CY26) and first half of 2027 (H1CY27) which could impact revenues and growth. Elevated capex levels due to higher growth and maintenance capex which will impact earnings growth as well free cash flow and payouts. They cut Indus Towers’ revenue and profit after tax (PAT) estimates by 2-6% to factor renewal risks post which stock offers 3% EPS growth and a 4% yield. They said risks on growth outlook should weigh on re-rating potential too.Kotak Institutional Equities has a buy on Ujjivan SFB with a target price of Rs 72. Analysts said that the RBI has returned Ujjivan SFB’s application for a universal bank license, citing need for further loan portfolio diversification. While the outcome is clearly not favourable, the regulator has flagged no concerns relating to governance, compliance or operational soundness. Analysts said their investment thesis did not factor in any benefit from a potential transition to a universal bank. Hence, they maintained a buy but remained watchful of any sharp changes in asset mix strategy in response to RBI’s feedback.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)
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