Update: The Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

S&P Global Ratings' outlook on Goldman and its rated subsidiaries is stable, reflecting our view that in 2024 and 2025 the company will generate strong profits and maintain good capital and liquidity as it aims to generate more low-risk revenue and boost profitability. We expect Goldman to generate strong profitability, as measured by metrics such as return on equity and return on risk-weighted assets, and to outperform many banks, especially those with stand-alone credit profiles (SACPs) that are one notch lower. We could lower our rating if Goldman suffers sizable operational, market, or trading losses that materially diminish its capital, liquidity, or reputation, or if the company's earnings strength weakens. A material increase in legal actions or regulatory sanctions could

...We expect The Goldman Sachs Group Inc., one of the world's largest and strongest players in trading and investment banking, to generally generate better profitability than most similarly rated peers, though earnings have fallen in 2023. Weakness in investment banking, declines in the fair value of on-balance-sheet investments, and expenses associated with exiting parts of consumer banking have weighed on earnings in 2023. The company reported a return on common equity (ROCE) below 8% in the first three quarters of the year, down from 12% for full-year 2022. Still, we expect its ROCE to return to double digits in 2024 and 2025, and to a level above the ROCEs of most similarly rated peers. Goldman's ongoing exit from parts of consumer banking reflects a major and costly shift in strategy and is, in our view, an acknowledgement that its substantial effort to build a significant and profitable consumer lending business has mostly not worked. Lacking competitive advantage and scale, Goldman...

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