Catenaa, Monday, April 13, 2026- Goldman Sachs profits rose 19% in Q1, fueled by a jump in M&A dealmaking and record equity trading.
The Wall Street bank reported that net earnings rose 19% to $5.6 billion in the first three months of 2026. That came through as $17.55 per share, exceeding the $16.34 per share that analysts forecast.
Goldman said revenue in its equity trading division rose 27% to a record $5.3 billion, surpassing its previously held record for Wall Street stock trading by $1 billion set last quarter.
Meanwhile, dealmaking fees jumped 48% to $2.8 billion over the same period, driven by the bank’s M&A advisory unit.
“Goldman Sachs delivered very strong performance for our shareholders this quarter, even as market conditions became more volatile,” Goldman CEO David Solomon said in a earnings release statement.
“The geopolitical landscape remains very complex, so disciplined risk management must remain core to how we operate,” Solomon added.
Total net revenue increased 14% to $17.22 billion over the period. Analysts expected $16.95 billion.
Goldman’s stock fell as much as 4% in Monday trading, putting shares down slightly since the beginning of the year.
The Wall Street bank kicked off the industry’s first quarter earnings season, where analysts expect Wall Street’s giant lenders to report sturdy results despite a reset in their stock prices.
Not all was stellar in Goldman’s results, however. Within its fixed income, currencies, and commodities intermediation business, also known as FICC, revenue fell 13% to $4 billion from the first quarter of 2025. Analysts were expecting $855 million more.
The bank said this business saw significantly lower net revenues in interest rate products, mortgages, and credit products, partially offset by significantly higher net revenues in commodities and currencies, according to its presentation.
From the US-Israeli war with Iran to ongoing investors’ worries over how much AI could disrupt existing software industry players and a shakeout in private credit, the quarter brought rapid changes and elevated volatility bouts across markets.
Despite the uncertainty, which can spook deal plans, Goldman beat expectations in each of its three main investment banking businesses, with its M&A advisory business notching an 89% spike in revenue from the year-ago period.
The bank also said, however, that as bankers notched deals in the quarter, its backlog has come down.
This week, investors will be eager to find out more about what a period of so much change has meant for the country’s biggest banks. JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup report on Tuesday, followed by Bank of America and Morgan Stanley on Wednesday.
