Goldman Sachs delivered exceptional third-quarter 2026 results, reporting net revenues of $18.68 billion and net earnings of $5.29 billion, marking the second-highest quarter in the firm's 157-year history. According to the latest earnings report, diluted earnings per share reached $17.01, significantly exceeding Wall Street expectations of $13.02. The year-to-date performance is already a record, with first nine months net revenues of $56.24 billion and net earnings of $17.55 billion, representing increases of 25% and 40% respectively. As reported by Reuters, the firm's annualized return on equity reached 18.7% and return on tangible equity was 20.5%.
The standout performance came from Goldman Sachs' equities division, which delivered net revenues of $6.44 billion, up 72% year-over-year. According to the earnings release, equities financing surged 96% to a record $3.365 billion, demonstrating the firm's ability to lend its balance sheet to clients rather than trading itself. This represents a fundamental shift in Goldman's business model and marks a significant departure from traditional investment banking operations. The equities performance was boosted by stock sales from companies tapping into the artificial intelligence spending boom, as reported by Bloomberg, with the firm's biggest deals including SK Hynix, Intel Corp.'s $23 billion stock sale and large convertible bond sales for AI cloud computing firms CoreWeave Inc. and Nebius Group NV.
According to Bloomberg reports, Goldman Sachs topped its four biggest US equity underwriting rivals in the third quarter, with only Morgan Stanley reporting a decline in fees compared to last year. The firm's equity capital markets revenue for the quarter totaled $666 million, representing a 43% increase from the same period a year earlier. This performance was boosted by stock sales from companies tapping into the artificial intelligence spending boom. As reported by Reuters, total investment banking fees rose 21% to $3.22 billion, with advisory fees reaching a quarterly record of $1.65 billion. The five banks' combined fees climbed 13% versus the corresponding period last year to $2.5 billion, producing their second-best ECM quarter since 2021.
Chairman and CEO David Solomon acknowledged the challenging operating environment while highlighting client demand for Goldman's services. As reported by Reuters, Solomon credited the firm's "market-leading franchises, deep relationships and continued investments" for the strong performance. The quarter included a deliberate cost as Goldman accelerated approximately $450 million of charitable contributions, which reduced diluted EPS by about $1.00 and annualized ROE and ROTE by about 1.1 percentage points each. However, even after accounting for this contribution, the firm earned roughly $18 per share on a return on equity of about 20%. Solomon noted that ECM revenues are running meaningfully above both five-year and 10-year averages, with technology innovation and AI infrastructure activity providing "real good ballast" for future capital markets activity.
According to Reuters, Goldman Sachs demonstrated superior performance compared to its major banking peers during the same reporting week. While Wells Fargo, Citigroup, and JPMorgan Chase all reported growth, none matched Goldman's equities surge. The firm's asset and wealth management revenues rose 14% to $5.05 billion, with assets under supervision reaching a record $4.1 trillion. Citigroup showed the biggest improvement from last year, with equity capital markets revenue jumping 77% to $343 million compared to the same quarter in 2025, helped by its leading role on the SK Hynix deal. In contrast, Morgan Stanley's equity underwriting fees fell 19% year-over-year, driven lower by IPOs and block trades, as the bank missed out on the $26.5 billion US listing of SK Hynix Inc.
