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TMFDeej (99.47)

Does anyone really think that Goldman is looking out for its clients?

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May 20, 2010 – Comments (6) | RELATED TICKERS: GS , MCO , BP

Does anyone really think that Goldman Sachs is ever looking out for its clients' best interests? Goldman only cares about Goldman, PERIOD. It would be a cold day in he-two-sticks that I ever took any trading advice from these guys. Take a look at these two recent stories and tell me what's wrong here:

Goldman Traders Had a Perfect Quarter

and

Goldman Sachs Hands Clients Losses in ‘Top Trades’

Yeah, yeah I know that these are two completely different departments that are "supposedly" separated by a firewall (suuuuure) and that much of Goldman's "trading" was probably flash trades that only lasted a tenth of second as these scummy folks skimmed pennies off of the trades that normal people like you and I have to make the old-fashioned way, but still Goldman makes me sick.  How on Earth does Goldman find anyone to purchase its "research" when we've seen them tell their clients to do one thing and then turn around and trade against them on its own books time and time again?

I used to own Goldman stock and I keep thinking about picking up some at least for my CAPS portfolio because it's so cheap right now, trading at just barely over book value, but I just can't bring myself to do it.  Much like Moody's (MCO) Goldman just disgusts me way too much, and that's saying a lot for someone who owns stock in BP and a cigarette company in real life.  Perhaps karma will eventually catch up with these guys and their operations will actually be less profitable in the future, I doubt it but it is a pleasant fiction to imagine.

Deej 

6 Comments – Post Your Own

#1) On May 20, 2010 at 8:13 AM, isusan (< 20) wrote:

They'd now like to handle your 401K...

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#2) On May 20, 2010 at 8:22 AM, dickseacup (68.18) wrote:

An interesting observation about GS and their behavior in the late 1920s.

"In the best of times the problem of investing funds prudently and wisely is difficult, and calls for exceptional experience, exceptional prudence, and exceptional brains...very many of the investment trusts organized during this period did make the best stock investments that could have been made, but the best were not good enough. In some conspicuous cases, however, their policies were not conservative, even by 1929 standards. The most conspicuous was doubtless the Goldman Sachs Trading Corporation which, with its two subsidiaries, Shenandoah and Blue Ridge, went through the sky like a blazing meteor for a time.", B. Anderson, "Economics and the Public Welfare"

Contrasted with:

"The most fortunate of the great investment trusts was probably the Lehman Corporation, which was formed so late in 1929 that its management was definitely afraid of the stock market, and was able to come into the crash with its capital all in cash.", Ibid.

My take is that the "great" investment banks of today are behaving, and have behaved for quite some time, as the old Bank of United States did prior to its dissolution in December 1930.YMMV.

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#3) On May 20, 2010 at 9:34 AM, MichaelMolenaar (< 20) wrote:

Recently I got a chance to talk with a Goldman Sachs employee. He was an affable guy, and among the other things he told the group I was with that the SEC probe into project: abacus was 90% political and that GS stock is undervalued. When I asked about wheather or not he thought it would be a double dip recession, he said he wasn't sure, but he was really concerned over Greece.

 

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#4) On May 20, 2010 at 9:34 AM, MichaelMolenaar (< 20) wrote:

Recently I got a chance to talk with a Goldman Sachs employee. He was an affable guy, and among the other things he told the group I was with that the SEC probe into project: abacus was 90% political and that GS stock is undervalued. When I asked about wheather or not he thought it would be a double dip recession, he said he wasn't sure, but he was really concerned over Greece.

 

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#5) On May 20, 2010 at 9:47 AM, Option1307 (30.51) wrote:

Your links are not linking for me...

I think this is what you were referring to:

Perfect quarter

Clients lose

Perhaps karma will eventually catch up with these guys and their operations will actually be less profitable in the future, I doubt it but it is a pleasant fiction to imagine.

We can only hope.

I've been seriously looking at picking up some GS as of late, I agree that it is starting to look attractive at these prices, but I just can't get passed the fact that they might actually experience the some real pain in the near future. Public opinion and the administration/SEC (scapegoat anyone?) is decidedly against them and actually counts for something. Usually when the public/politicians get "mad" stupid and sensesless laws are passed. I actually could see this happening and thus hindering the profits of GS. Then again, GS essentially owns the politicians, so nevermind, ha!

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#6) On May 20, 2010 at 10:20 AM, TMFDeej (99.47) wrote:

That is strange.  Thanks for the correct links, Option.  Perhaps it's because I used my Apple and Safari this morning to make the post.

Deej 

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