Goldman Sachs' 3Q profit up 2 percent to 3.17 billion dollars

Photo: Goldman Sachs' 3Q profit up 2 percent to 3.17 billion dollars

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. 3-quarter profit rose to 3.17 billion dollars (2.2 billion euros), or $7.01 per share, from $3.10 billion, or $6.59 per share in the year-ago period.

Such results easily beat Wall Street expectations for the fiscal fourth quarter, driven by gains in its investment banking and financial advisory segments.

The world’s largest investment bank’s revenue rose to $10.74 billion (EUR7.46 billion) from $9.41 billion a year earlier.

Results surpassed Wall Street projections for a profit of $6.87 per share on revenue of $10.16 billion (EUR7.06 billion), according to analysts polled by Thomson Financial.

Goldman's stock climbed 29 percent during the fourth quarter to close November at $226.64. The stock rose $3.27 to $211.90 in premarket electronic trading.