Goldman Sachs stock falls despite blockbuster earnings report

Shares of Goldman Sachs dropped Monday despite the Wall Street giant posting a blockbuster first-quarter profit, as investors zeroed in on weak spots beneath the headline numbers.The stock dropped roughly 2% intraday after initially plunging more than 4% at the open — even as the bank reported earnings and revenue that topped expectations.Investors also weighed the potential impact of the Iran conflict on dealmaking and market activity.Goldman posted net income of $5.63 billion on revenue of $17.23 billion for the quarter, with earnings per share of $17.55 — topping analyst estimates of $16.49 per share on revenue of about $16.97 billion.But the strong headline results were overshadowed by a sharp miss in a key business line: fixed-income trading.Revenue from fixed income, currencies and commodities — known as FICC — came in at roughly $4 billion, falling short of expectations by as much as $900 million, according to estimates cited by analysts.The shortfall in FICC, a core driver of institutional trading revenue, weighed heavily on investor sentiment and sparked concerns about whether trading conditions are beginning to soften.Weakness wasn’t limited to trading.The firm’s asset and wealth management division generated $4.08 billion in revenue, falling roughly $140 million short of analyst expectations.At the same time, Goldman reported a larger-than-expected provision for credit losses, booking about $315 million — more than double the roughly $150 million analysts had anticipated.The higher provision raised questions about potential stress in the bank’s lending portfolio and exposure to private credit markets.It was the bank’s largest increase in loan loss provisions since 2020, Wells Fargo analyst Mike Mayo said in a note cited by CNBC.Nonetheless, the company offered to a positive take on the first-quarter results.“Goldman Sachs delivered very strong performance for our shareholders this quarter, even as market conditions became more volatil...