Goldman Sachs Earnings Down, Hit By Litigation Charges

Goldman Sachs (GS) posted earnings on Thursday that showed a sharp decline from last year's numbers. The investment bank was hit with a hefty mortgage related litigation charge of $1.45 billion that dented otherwise impressive profits. Goldman reported earnings of $1.98 per share, missing the estimated $3.98 per share. Revenue beat estimates, coming in at $9.07 billion but was down from last year's $9.13 billion. The banking giant announced an acquisition this week of San Francisco based asset management firm, Imprint Capital. Goldman stock has increased around 25 percent over the last year, rising above the S&P 500 which has seen a 9 percent jump. Goldman stock was down on the earnings news.