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BAC vs. GS: Bank of America vs. Goldman Sachs Stock Comparison

How do Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS) share the Financials sector but sit in different industry groups — BAC in Banks and GS in Financial Services.

Company profile comparison for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS)
Profile ItemBACGS
NameBank of America CorporationThe Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorFinancialsFinancials
GICS Industry GroupBanksFinancial Services
GICS IndustryBanksCapital Markets
GICS Sub-IndustryDiversified BanksInvestment Banking & Brokerage
Market Capitalization341.01 billion USD249.73 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateFebruary 21, 1973May 4, 1999
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

BAC
GS
GSPC
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS)
MetricBACGS
Total Return (1Y)-2.73%17.85%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)25.52%44.69%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)4.08%20.41%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

BAC
GS
GSPC
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS)
MetricBACGS
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)22.49%33.28%
Beta (5Y)1.181.27
Max Drawdown (5Y)-46.64%-30.90%
Avg. Volume (3M)37.08M2.10M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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BAC and GS are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. Each dashed Capital Allocation Line uses that stock's own industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS)
MetricBACGS
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)-0.310.41
Sortino Ratio (1Y)-0.410.59

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Bank of America (BAC) at 10.73% and Goldman Sachs (GS) at 17.71% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

BAC

Banks industry group

10.73%

Max
19.84%
Q3
13.67%
Median
11.49%
BAC
10.73%
Q1
9.50%
Min
3.64%

GS

Financial Services industry group

17.71%

Max
44.78%
Q3
21.85%
GS
17.71%
Median
12.91%
Q1
4.48%
Min
-18.71%
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): A comparison of their ROE against their respective Banks and Financial Services industry group benchmarks.

Net Margin (TTM)

Goldman Sachs (GS) at 31.21% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Bank of America (BAC) at 28.06%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

BAC

Banks industry group

28.06%

Max
47.19%
Q3
35.25%
Median
31.21%
BAC
28.06%
Q1
27.11%
Min
14.93%

GS

Financial Services industry group

31.21%

Max
62.84%
GS
31.21%
Q3
28.05%
Median
15.36%
Q1
4.82%
Min
-28.52%
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): A comparison of their net margin against their respective Banks and Financial Services industry group benchmarks.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Goldman Sachs (GS) reports operating margin of 38.37%; Bank of America (BAC) doesn’t report a comparable line — in Banks, funding costs sit inside the core business rather than below an operating line, so profitability is better judged on net margin or ROE.

BAC

Banks industry group

--

BAC
--
Max
--
Q3
--
Median
--
Q1
--
Min
--

GS

Financial Services industry group

38.37%

Max
107.33%
Q3
55.90%
GS
38.37%
Median
30.09%
Q1
14.60%
Min
-44.34%
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): BAC’s operating margin is not assessed under the Banks industry convention, so the chart shows available visual context for GS only.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS)
MetricBACGS
ROE (TTM)10.73%17.71%
ROA (TTM)0.94%1.11%
Net Margin (TTM)28.06%31.21%
Operating Margin (TTM)--38.37%
Gross Margin (TTM)----

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Bank of America (BAC) at 6.84% and Goldman Sachs (GS) at 8.92% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Bank of America (BAC) at 18.69% and Goldman Sachs (GS) at 26.59% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS)
MetricBACGS
Revenue Growth (YoY)6.84%8.92%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)6.00%7.16%
EPS Growth (YoY)18.69%26.59%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)6.10%19.52%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: Bank of America (BAC) in Banks and Goldman Sachs (GS) in Financial Services both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: Bank of America (BAC) in Banks and Goldman Sachs (GS) in Financial Services run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS)
MetricBACGS
Current Ratio (MRQ)----
Debt / Equity (MRQ)----
Net Debt / EBITDA----

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Bank of America (BAC) at 2.33% and Goldman Sachs (GS) at 2.07% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

BAC

Banks industry group

2.33%

Max
5.79%
Q3
3.18%
Median
2.39%
BAC
2.33%
Q1
1.20%
Min
0.00%

GS

Financial Services industry group

2.07%

Max
9.77%
Q3
3.92%
GS
2.07%
Median
1.09%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): A comparison of their dividend yield against their respective Banks and Financial Services industry group benchmarks.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Bank of America (BAC) at 27.62% and Goldman Sachs (GS) at 25.88% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

BAC

Banks industry group

27.62%

Max
70.75%
Q3
41.28%
Median
29.26%
BAC
27.62%
Q1
18.98%
Min
0.00%

GS

Financial Services industry group

25.88%

Max
241.07%
Q3
97.36%
GS
25.88%
Median
25.77%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): A comparison of their payout ratio against their respective Banks and Financial Services industry group benchmarks.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS)
MetricBACGS
Dividend Yield (TTM)2.33%2.07%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)27.62%25.88%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Bank of America (BAC) at 11.79 and Goldman Sachs (GS) at 12.45 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

BAC

Banks industry group

11.79

Max
18.16
Q3
13.75
Median
11.81
BAC
11.79
Q1
10.64
Min
6.49

GS

Financial Services industry group

12.45

Max
45.85
Q3
24.64
Median
15.37
GS
12.45
Q1
9.68
Min
0.16
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): A comparison of their P/E ratio against their respective Banks and Financial Services industry group benchmarks.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Goldman Sachs (GS) shows P/S ratio of 3.52; for Bank of America (BAC) the multiple is skipped — in Banks, income is dominated by interest spread rather than a conventional revenue line, so pricing per dollar of sales loses meaning and book- or earnings-based multiples carry the comparison.

BAC

Banks industry group

--

BAC
--
Max
--
Q3
--
Median
--
Q1
--
Min
--

GS

Financial Services industry group

3.52

Max
9.23
Q3
4.57
GS
3.52
Median
2.72
Q1
1.28
Min
-0.55
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): BAC’s P/S ratio is not assessed under the Banks industry convention, so the chart shows available visual context for GS only.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both Bank of America (BAC) at 1.26 and Goldman Sachs (GS) at 2.36 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

BAC

Banks industry group

1.26

Max
2.28
Q3
1.58
Median
1.32
BAC
1.26
Q1
1.10
Min
0.59

GS

Financial Services industry group

2.36

Max
7.79
Q3
3.63
GS
2.36
Median
1.57
Q1
0.81
Min
-0.39
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Bank of America (BAC) vs. Goldman Sachs (GS): A comparison of their P/B ratio against their respective Banks and Financial Services industry group benchmarks.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Bank of America (BAC) and Goldman Sachs (GS)
MetricBACGS
P/E Ratio (TTM)11.7912.45
P/S Ratio (TTM)--3.52
P/B Ratio (MRQ)1.262.36
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)----