Goldman Sachs 79 percent up, Bear Stearns 38 percent down.

Source: Stock Market Digital

Date :20/09/2007 16:08:49

Third quarter results for the two Wall St firms couldn’t be more different.

Following the news of Lehman Brothers’ three percent and Morgan Stanley’s seventeen percent drops, the biggest surprise of the week is Goldman Sachs continued good performance.

Goldman’s net income rose 79 percent in the third quarter to $2.85 billion from $1.59 billion last year, their statement said today.

This is the seventh straight quarter that Goldman Sachs has outperformed expectations.

Lloyd Blankfein, their chief executive who today celebrates his 53rd birthday, was understandably pleased:

"Given the difficult environment of the third quarter, many of our businesses were challenged. But overall, the quality of our franchise produced strong results as clients continue to look to us for advice and execution."

Bear Stearn, on the other hand, reported net income of $1.3 billion down from $2.1 billion. James E. Cayne, chairman and chief executive officer, had this to say:

"The third quarter was characterized by extremely difficult securitization markets and high volatility levels across asset classes.

“While our fixed income results clearly reflect these market conditions, we reported solid revenues in Investment Banking and record revenues in Global Equities and Global Clearing Services.

"I am confident in the underlying strength of our business and proud of the effort and determination displayed by our employees during these challenging times."

Matt Albrecht, a New York-based analyst said Stearn was in this position as “it has the most exposure to fixed income and least to international markets.

“`Their reliance on the mortgage market isn't going to help as that market continues to roil.”

September 20 2007

Related Links

Goldman Sachs

Bear Stearns

Lehman Brothers

Morgan Stanley