Huge Insider Sale by High Profile Executive at Goldman Sachs, Plus Other Noteworthy Insider Transactions

Huge Insider Sale by High Profile Man at Goldman Sachs

Let’s turn our attention to a massive insider sale observed at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS), where one of the company’s highest profile men offloaded a sizeable block of shares. Michael S. Sherwood, Vice Chairman of the Goldman Sachs Group and co-Chief Executive Officer of Goldman Sachs International, sold 42,317 shares on Wednesday at prices varying from $206.53 to $207.30 per share, cutting his direct ownership stake to 195,041 shares.

Several days ago, analysts at Macquarie upgraded Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS) to ‘Outperform’ from ‘Neutral’, citing a business mix shift from investing and lending toward investment banking and asset management, among other things. “Although more traditional lenders may benefit more from the steepening of the curve, we believe Goldman Sachs has more earnings levers than peers, should fiscal stimulus and lower corporate taxes help increase economic activity driving better earnings leverage for the leading global adviser in M&A and a leader in ECM [i.e. equity capital markets],” said Macquarie analysts in a recent note. The shares of Goldman Sachs have gained 16% year-to-date. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway had 10.96 million shares of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS) in its portfolio at the end of September.

Insiders at Well-Known Asset Management Company Unload Shares

Two members of Diamond Hill Investment Group Inc. (NASDAQ:DHIL)’s boardroom offloaded shares last. Roderick H. Dillon Jr., Chairman of the Board, sold 2,188 shares on Wednesday, 8,599 shares on Thursday and 16,000 shares on Friday at prices varying from $200.00 to $202.46 per share. Mr. Dillon currently owns 128,434 shares following the recent transactions. Board member James Francis Laird Jr. liquidated 9,000 shares on Wednesday at a price of $200.00 each, cutting his ownership to 49,562 shares.

The asset management company has seen its market capitalization jump by 7% since the start of the year. Diamond Hill Investment Group Inc. (NASDAQ:DHIL), which derives its revenues and net income from investment advisory and administration services, reported total revenue of $96.06 million for the first three quarters of 2016, up from $92.13 million reported for the same period of the previous year. The increase in the company’s top line was mainly driven by an increase in average assets under management (AUM). The revenue increase was partly offset by higher operating expenses, primarily related to general and administrative expenses, and mutual fund administration expenses. Royce & Associated, founded by Chuck Royce, owned 118,496 shares of Diamond Hill Investment Group Inc. (NASDAQ:DHIL) on September 30.

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