Buy Goldman Sachs or BlackRock Stock After Strong Q4 Earnings?

The market received fourth-quarter results from many of the major U.S. banks on Wednesday, including reports from investment firms Goldman Sachs GS and BlackRock BLK.As two of the renowned global leaders in asset management, let’s see if it’s time to buy stock in either of these New York-based finance giants.Goldman's Massive EPS Suprise Goldman Sachs stole the show in yesterday’s busy earnings lineup which also included Q4 reports from three of the four major big banks, Wells Fargo WFC, Citigroup C, and JPMorgan JPM.Taking the spotlight, Goldman reported a massive EPS surprise of 48% with Q4 earnings at $4.11 billion or $11.95 per share compared to expectations of $8.07. This came on quarterly sales of $13.86 billion which was 13% above estimates of $12.26 billion.Goldman attributed its stellar Q4 results to an improved operating backdrop with Q4 earnings doubling from the comparative quarter while sales increased 22% from $11.31 billion a year ago.Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchBlackRock Reaches Record AUM BlackRock didn’t blow away its Q4 expectations but was able to flex its robust financial figures as well. Q4 EPS was at $11.93 compared to expectations of $11.27 with sales of $5.67 billion coming in 2% better than expected.Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchYear over year, BlackRock’s Q4 earnings and sales spiked over 20% respectively as the company highlighted that its assets under management (AUM) hit a record $11.6 trillion thanks to quarterly net inflows of $281 billion.Image Source: ReutersFull-Year ComparisonWhile BlackRock remains the world’s largest money manager, Goldman ended 2024 as the global leader in announced and completed mergers and acquisitions (M&A).Overall, Goldman’s total sales spiked 16% in fiscal 2024 to $53.51 billion compared to $46.25 billion in 2023. More impressive, annual earnings soared over 70% to $14.28 billion or $40.54 per share versus EPS of $22.87 in 2023. Notably, this was the second-highest mark on Goldman’s top and bottom lines with its incorporation dating back to 1867.As for BlackRock, total sales of $20.41 billion increased 14% with annual earnings rising over 15% to $6.37 billion or $43.61 per share. It’s also noteworthy that BlackRock reported record annual net inflows of $641 billion in addition to its peak in AUM. Performance & Valuation Comparison Over the last year, Goldman’s stock has risen +62% to impressively top BlackRock and the benchmark S&P 500’s gains of +26%. In the last five years, GS is up +145% to also top BLK and the broader market’s gains of over +80%.Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchAt their current levels, GS trades at 13.9X forward earnings and at a pleasant discount to BLK which trades roughly on par with the benchmark at 21.2X  Image Source: Zacks Investment ResearchBottom Line Attributed to its "cheaper" P/E valuation and the fact that earnings estimate revisions are likely to rise after a massive Q4 EPS surprise, Goldman Sachs stock sports a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) with BlackRock landing a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).Zacks Names #1 Semiconductor StockIt's only 1/9,000th the size of NVIDIA which skyrocketed more than +800% since we recommended it. NVIDIA is still strong, but our new top chip stock has much more room to boom.With strong earnings growth and an expanding customer base, it's positioned to feed the rampant demand for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Internet of Things. Global semiconductor manufacturing is projected to explode from $452 billion in 2021 to $803 billion by 2028.See This Stock Now for Free >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (GS): Free Stock Analysis Report BlackRock (BLK): Free Stock Analysis Report Wells Fargo & Company (WFC): Free Stock Analysis Report JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM): Free Stock Analysis Report Citigroup Inc. (C): Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks