This Week in Finance: Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, and More

The cheapest major bank, Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C), got a little bit cheaper this week, falling by 1.3% from Monday through Friday. Citigroup reported better-than-expected earnings for its third quarter, turning in a profit of $1.24 per share versus estimates of $1.16 per share. Revenue for the period came in at $17.76 billion, down by 4% year-over-year, and $420 million ahead of estimates. Tangible book value clocked in at $64.71 per share and the company’s net interest margin for the period was 2.86%. At the end of June, 97 funds followed by Insider Monkey had a bullish position in Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) at the end of June, down by four funds from the previous quarter.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) inched up higher by around 0.4% this week as peer earnings showed better-than-expected capital markets activity. Given that data point, traders are anticipating solid numbers from Goldman once it reports its quarterly results. On a separate note, Goldman made headlines this week after the investment bank launched Marcus.com, an online lending platform. Although online lending won’t make much of a difference for Goldman in the near term, it will improve Goldman’s relationship with Main Street, which will be very important on the Hill next time a financial crisis occurs. In addition, Goldman also scored a legal victory on Friday in a $1.2 billion dispute with the Libyan Investment Authority. The victory reaffirms Wall Street’s unwritten rule that sophisticated investors should not be required to be treated with kid gloves. The number of funds from our database with holdings in Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) fell by one quarter-over-quarter to 68 at the end of June.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) has declined by 0.87% this week despite reporting strong third-quarter results. During the time period, JPMorgan earned $1.58 per share on sales of $25.51 billion, beating the consensus estimates by $0.19 and $1.52 billion, respectively. Sales rose 8.4% year-over-year and the bank returned $3.8 billion of capital back to shareholders during the three months. After conducting an investigation on its own cross-selling practices as a precautionary measure, the company did not find anything amiss systematically. Many investors expect JPMorgan earnings to improve as interest rates normalize and as commodity prices rise. A total of 99 funds tracked by us had a bullish position in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) at the end of the second quarter.

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