Goldman Sachs’ Operating Profit Soars

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reported better-than-expected profit from operations of $756 million, or $1.54 a share, for the fourth quarter on gains in investment banking, a turnaround from last year’s loss. In the year-ago period, when the company was still privately held, Goldman Sachs reported a loss of $8 million, 2 cents a share, partly because of losses from bond trading. The latest results beat the $1.25-a-share average forecast of 13 analysts compiled by First Call Corp. Revenue jumped 265% to $3.47 billion from a year ago. Investment banking net revenue grew 59% to $1.31 billion, fees from advising on mergers rose 50% to $622 million, and fees from underwriting securities sales jumped 68% to $683 million. Goldman’s shares declined 94 cents to close at $80.94 on the New York Stock Exchange.