How to buy Goldman Sachs shares (GS)

By:

Charlie Hancox

Charlie is a Financial Writer for Invezz. He covers commodities, cryptocurrencies, and breaking news. Prior to joining Invezz he helped grow Crux Investor into the fastest-growing... read more.

Updated: Jul 6, 2023

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This page explains the things you need to know about Goldman Sachs before investing, like you can own its shares and the company’s recent performance.

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You can get your hands on Goldman Sachs shares straight away with a reliable broker. Use one of the platforms below, which have all been assessed and approved by our team of financial experts. For more information on Goldman Sachs, scroll down this page.

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How to buy Goldman Sachs stocks, a step-by-step guide

It’s very simple to invest in the stock market. We have broken the process down into the easy-to-follow steps you need to take to make an investment.

1. Choose a broker. The firs thing you need to find is an online brokerage stock platform. There are many different options to choose from, each with its own unique benefits and drawbacks. The comparison table above can help you select the right broker for you, and you can head to our comprehensive broker reviews if you’re still unsure, or check out our stock apps page.
2. Create an account. Once you’ve selected your broker, simply go to their website and create an account. The steps required for this will vary from platform to platform, but generally, you can expect to have to provide your name, email address, phone number, and some form of photo identification.
3. Deposit funds. Log into your broker account and select the option to deposit funds. Depending on your broker you’ll have a variety of payment options available; most brokers accept bank transfers and debit card payments, but not all accept e-wallets such as PayPal. Select your preferred payment method and deposit the amount of money you wish to invest in Goldman Sachs shares.
4. Place an order for GS stock. Search for Goldman Sachs’s ticker symbol (GS) and see the current price at which the stock is trading. If you’re happy with the price, enter the number of shares you wish to own and place your order.
5. Execute your order. Once you have placed your order, your broker will automatically execute it for you and your Goldman Sachs shares will be listed in your account. Congratulations, you’ve just bought shares in Goldman Sachs!

What is Goldman Sachs? And should I invest?

Founded in 1869 in New York, Goldman Sachs is a leading multinational financial institution. It offers a wide range of services in different fields, such as investment banking, securities, investment management and consumer banking. Moreover, its client demographic includes institutional and retail investors as well as various corporations and national governments. The company is part of the S&P 500.

The company has experienced numerous controversies, including being heavily involved in the 2008 global financial crisis and more recently, the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund scandal of 2015. However, since its IPO on the NYSE in 1999, it has still managed to grow into one of the largest investment banks in the world by revenue, with over 40,000 employees spread across more than 30 countries.

In recent years, the company has been pushing hard into retail banking territory in an attempt to compete with companies like Citibank and J.P. Morgan Chase for market share. With Goldman’s online reach, strong brand and large budget, many feel it is only a matter of time until the company unlocks more value.

How has the company performed in recent years?

The company’s share price has performed well in the last 5 years, especially since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. The company’s heightened revenue has been a key part of this growth, up 21.93% to $44.56 billion in 2020.

With a modest dividend of $1.25 per share, this is far from one of the best dividend stocks for investors, though when combined with the growth of the company’s share price, it forms an appealing value investment proposition.

Many primarily associate Goldman Sachs with investment banking, though this only constitutes around 21% of its total revenue. So, with the variety of cash streams coming into the company, new growth opportunities may well present themselves in the coming years, driving the company’s valuation up.

Is it a good time to buy Goldman Sachs shares now?

Financial stocks like Goldman Sachs are cyclical, meaning they are closely tied to the overall trends of the market. This means that generally, the company’s stock will increase in value during a bull market and decrease in the opposite conditions. Therefore, finding the right time to invest requires you to pay close attention to news coming from the broader financial markets.

The stock market has performed well for most of the last decade, providing strong returns to many investors. However, some speculate this market cycle will be coming to an end imminently, and returns will soon dwindle. However, others feel that prices will continue to rise for many years. Consequently, it is extremely important to do you own research and make your own mind up.

A good place to start when doing your due diligence is our analysis. We have compiled some of our latest pieces below that you can use to fuel your research on Goldman Sachs and the wider financial markets:

Buying, selling and trading Goldman Sachs shares for beginners

What to do before buying shares

You should always take the time to research a stock fully before investing money, especially if you haven’t bought shares before. The more knowledge you have, the better your chances of making a wise investment. 

With that in mind, here’s a checklist to run through before you start.

1. Research the company. You should always examine the fundamentals of a company first. What is Goldman Sachs? How did the company get its start? How did it grow? Is Goldman Sachs’s revenue and profit growth picking up? Is the company innovating? The more you know about Goldman Sachs, the better positioned you’ll be to make smart investment decisions.
2. Make sure you understand the basics of stock investing. Before you start investing in the stock market, make sure you have an understanding of how it works. This will ensure that you have more clearly defined goals and have thought through how you will achieve them.
3. Decide between share dealing and CFD trading. Choose the type of investment strategy you want to pursue, and make sure you have carried out the necessary fundamental or technical analysis for share dealing and CFD trading respectively.
4. Set the size of your budget. The golden rule of investing is never to risk more than you can afford to lose. Not every investment you make will result in a profit, so it is important to set a budget that not only allows good potential for capital growth, but also protects against overly damaging losses.
5. Find the right broker. Individual brokers each have their own pros and cons. Some will have low fees but have a user interface you struggle to understand, whereas others may be a bit more expensive but come with a range of features that you want to take advantage of. Use our reviews to find the right platform for you.
6. Examine broader market conditions. No stock exists in a vacuum, and it’s always important to analyse the general trends of the stock market as a whole before investing. If a bear market is setting in and stock prices are falling, it’s best to wait it out and invest your money later when the stock is cheaper. While if the market is looking bullish, you’ll want to make your investment quickly to get the maximum benefit from rising stock prices. Follow the news to stay on top of the financial markets.

What is the difference between buying, selling, and trading shares?

If you’re new to stock investing, then it’s important to understand the basics of how to buy, sell, and trade Goldman Sachs shares. Here’s a quick run-through of what’s involved in each.

Buying Goldman Sachs

This process involves finding a broker and placing an order for Goldman Sachs, as outlined in the steps further up this page. Ideally, you want to time your investment when the stock’s price is low so that you can profit by selling the shares after they increase in value.

Selling Goldman Sachs

When you sell any Goldman Sachs shares you have bought, you’ll want to do so at a higher price than the one at which you bought to earn a profit. 

When you sell is up to you. You might decide to hold for the long term, hoping to benefit from the company growing steadily throughout. Or, if you see that Goldman Sachs’s stock is already up a lot compared to the price you bought it and you’ve noticed that the stock market is starting to fall, it might make sense to sell and take your profits to invest elsewhere. Equally, if the stock has fallen since you bought it and looks set to fall further, it might be a good idea to cut your losses by selling your shares.

Trading Goldman Sachs

Trading is the same process, it’s just done over shorter periods of time with the aim to make small profits on a regular basis. This means that you can make money faster and spend your profits in your day-to-day life – however, on the other side it means you can lose money faster as well. For inexperienced investors, we generally recommend making investments for at least 6 months to a year instead of making trades in quick succession.

You can trade Goldman Sachs shares through buying and selling shares, or by trading with CFDs. These allow investors to speculate on stock prices and trade with leverage in pursuit of bigger gains. CFDs trading is explained further in the next section, but it is worth noting that beginners should avoid trading with leverage. It comes with large risks and is best left to experienced investors.

Share dealing vs CFD trading

When it comes to investing in any stock, the two options you have are share dealing and trading. Which one of these methods to opt for largely depends on your investment timeline, with investors thinking long term tending to go for share dealing, and those looking for short term gains pursuing a more aggressive trading strategy.

Here’s a quick summary of the two approaches, and the pros and cons of each.

Share dealing 

Share dealing refers to the practice of holding shares in a particular company over the long term. When investing like this, you’re seeking to profit either from dividend payments or an increase in the stock’s price over time.

When investing your money this way, it is important to do a thorough fundamental analysis of the company in which you are investing. You want to put your money in a stock you believe will trend upwards over time, even if there is some market volatility along the way, rather than get distracted by shorter-term peaks and troughs.

Pros

• Can build wealth over time to achieve financial goals
• Don’t need to be very reactive to short-term market movements
• Some stocks will give you an income through regular dividend payments

Cons

• Takes a long time to realise any profits
• Your capital is tied up in stocks and cannot be used for other investments

CFD Trading 

If your aim is to generate profits in the short term, then you might be better off trading shares than holding them in your portfolio. Stock trades like this are executed using CFDs (contracts for difference), which allow investors to trade against the value of a stock without having to take ownership of it. When CFD trading, investors are looking to buy and sell stocks fast to profit from short-term fluctuations in value.

One aspect of CFD trading that many investors find attractive is that they allow you to trade with leverage. This means you can place large trades while only putting up a fraction of the value yourself – for instance, if a platform offered leverage of 1:10, you could put £10 into Goldman Sachs shares and be able to trade £100 worth. This can maximise profits if the market moves in your favour, but be careful as it can also lead to heavy losses.

When trading using CFDs, it is key to be skilled at technical analysis and reading stock price charts. As you’re trading stocks quickly and frequently, the fundamental strength of the company in which you’re investing isn’t as important as being able to predict how its stock price will rise and fall minute-by-minute.

Pros

• Can generate fast profits if you read the market right 
• Some platforms allow you to trade with leverage
• Prevents your capital being tied up so you can take advantage of investment opportunities

Cons

• Trading with leverage is risky and can lead to big losses
• Doesn’t necessarily generate growth over the long term

Consider which approach suits you best and craft an investment strategy that works for you. If you need more information, use our trading course and read our guide to CFD trading to get you up to speed. 

How to choose a broker

With the wide variety of online brokers available these days, it can be hard to figure out which is the best service to go with. Our comparison table and in-depth reviews can help you cut through the noise, but by and large these are the aspects you should be considering when selecting a broker:

• Range of stocks available. The most important thing is that you can actually use the broker to find the shares you’re looking for. Some brokers offer more stocks than others, and many will allow you to trade other assets, such as cryptocurrency and commodities.
• Fees and commissions. You want to keep as large a chunk of your profits as you can, so it’s important to make sure your broker doesn’t charge high fees that can eat into your profits.
• Regulation. You should only use regulated brokers to place trades. Unregulated brokers can be risky and offer little to no protection if the business were to fail while you had funds in your account.
• Payment methods available. You might want to get Goldman Sachs shares using a specific payment method, such as PayPal. Not all brokers accept every payment method, but using our comparisons you can search only the brokers that support the option you’re looking for.
• Reputation. One of the strongest indicators of a broker’s reliability is the reputation it has with the customers who have used it. Brokers are online businesses, and as such many user experiences can be found online. You can check these out in addition to our reviews to make sure you choose the right platform.
• Customer service. As you’re going to be investing your money using the platform, you want to check that the broker offers good customer service in case you have a query or something goes wrong.