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Goldman's IB Fees Jump 52% in 1H26: Will the Uptrend Continue?
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Key Takeaways
Goldman's IB fees jumped 52% to $6.24 billion in 1H26 on broad-based strength.
Equity underwriting surged 90%, while advisory and debt underwriting rose 46% and 37%.
Goldman's five-year-high backlog offers revenue visibility, though recovery could remain uneven.
Investment banking (IB) activity at The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (GS - Free Report) gathered significant momentum in the first half of 2026, aided by improving dealmaking and capital market conditions. The company’s IB fees jumped 52% year over year to $6.24 billion, driven by broad-based strength across advisory and underwriting businesses in the first half of 2026.
The improvement was particularly pronounced in equity underwriting. In the first six months of 2026, advisory revenues increased 46% year over year to $2.87 billion, while equity underwriting revenues surged 90% to $1.52 billion. Debt underwriting revenues advanced 37% to $1.84 billion. In the second quarter alone, IB fees climbed 55% to $3.40 billion. Equity underwriting benefited from higher secondary and initial public offerings, while debt underwriting was supported by increased leveraged-finance and asset-backed activity. Advisory revenues gained from higher industry-wide completed M&A volumes.
Goldman’s strong competitive position has further supported the momentum. In the second quarter, the company remained #1 in announced and completed M&A, equity and equity-related offerings, and leveraged lending, while ranking #2 in high-yield debt. This leadership underscores the strength of its global franchise and its ability to capture opportunities as corporate transaction activity improves.
Further momentum in Goldman’s investment banking business will likely be supported by robust strategic M&A activity, AI-related capital formation, stronger financing demand, and improving equity and debt underwriting activity. The firm’s investment banking backlog has reached a five-year high, including a record advisory backlog, providing good revenue visibility. Its leading positions in announced and completed M&A, equity and equity-related offerings, and leveraged lending should also help it capture a greater share of improving capital-market activity.
Nonetheless, the pace of recovery could remain uneven. Deal completions and IPO activity are sensitive to market volatility, economic conditions, financing availability, trade-policy uncertainty, geopolitical developments and regulatory approvals. Overall, Goldman’s strong market position, improving capital market backdrop and elevated backlog suggest that IB momentum is likely to remain healthy, though the magnitude of growth will depend on how quickly the robust pipeline translates into completed transactions.
IB Business Performance of GS’s Peers
Similar to GS, its close peers, JPMorgan (JPM - Free Report) and Morgan Stanley (MS - Free Report) , are benefiting from industry-wide improvement in the operating environment.
JPMorgan remains well-positioned to benefit as capital markets and advisory activity normalize over time. In the first half of 2026, JPMorgan captured a 9.3% wallet share. Looking ahead, a healthy pipeline and resilient M&A demand (as companies seek scale, cost synergies and enhanced technology capabilities to remain competitive) are expected to support the IB business.
Morgan Stanley's IB franchise continues to recover as issuance and strategic activity improve. In the first half of 2026, IB fees jumped 47% year over year. Looking ahead, Morgan Stanley is well-positioned to benefit from a healthier deal environment, supported by a robust and diversified pipeline across regions and sectors.
GS shares have jumped 40.3% in the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 22.5%.
Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Goldman trades at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 14.42X, above the industry’s average of 13.94X.
Price-to-Earnings F12M
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GS’s 2026 and 2027 earnings implies year-over-year rallies of 34.2% and 4.9%, respectively. Estimates for both years have been unchanged over the past month.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
Goldman's IB Fees Jump 52% in 1H26: Will the Uptrend Continue?
Key Takeaways
Investment banking (IB) activity at The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (GS - Free Report) gathered significant momentum in the first half of 2026, aided by improving dealmaking and capital market conditions. The company’s IB fees jumped 52% year over year to $6.24 billion, driven by broad-based strength across advisory and underwriting businesses in the first half of 2026.
The improvement was particularly pronounced in equity underwriting. In the first six months of 2026, advisory revenues increased 46% year over year to $2.87 billion, while equity underwriting revenues surged 90% to $1.52 billion. Debt underwriting revenues advanced 37% to $1.84 billion. In the second quarter alone, IB fees climbed 55% to $3.40 billion. Equity underwriting benefited from higher secondary and initial public offerings, while debt underwriting was supported by increased leveraged-finance and asset-backed activity. Advisory revenues gained from higher industry-wide completed M&A volumes.
Goldman’s strong competitive position has further supported the momentum. In the second quarter, the company remained #1 in announced and completed M&A, equity and equity-related offerings, and leveraged lending, while ranking #2 in high-yield debt. This leadership underscores the strength of its global franchise and its ability to capture opportunities as corporate transaction activity improves.
Further momentum in Goldman’s investment banking business will likely be supported by robust strategic M&A activity, AI-related capital formation, stronger financing demand, and improving equity and debt underwriting activity. The firm’s investment banking backlog has reached a five-year high, including a record advisory backlog, providing good revenue visibility. Its leading positions in announced and completed M&A, equity and equity-related offerings, and leveraged lending should also help it capture a greater share of improving capital-market activity.
Nonetheless, the pace of recovery could remain uneven. Deal completions and IPO activity are sensitive to market volatility, economic conditions, financing availability, trade-policy uncertainty, geopolitical developments and regulatory approvals. Overall, Goldman’s strong market position, improving capital market backdrop and elevated backlog suggest that IB momentum is likely to remain healthy, though the magnitude of growth will depend on how quickly the robust pipeline translates into completed transactions.
IB Business Performance of GS’s Peers
Similar to GS, its close peers, JPMorgan (JPM - Free Report) and Morgan Stanley (MS - Free Report) , are benefiting from industry-wide improvement in the operating environment.
JPMorgan remains well-positioned to benefit as capital markets and advisory activity normalize over time. In the first half of 2026, JPMorgan captured a 9.3% wallet share. Looking ahead, a healthy pipeline and resilient M&A demand (as companies seek scale, cost synergies and enhanced technology capabilities to remain competitive) are expected to support the IB business.
Morgan Stanley's IB franchise continues to recover as issuance and strategic activity improve. In the first half of 2026, IB fees jumped 47% year over year. Looking ahead, Morgan Stanley is well-positioned to benefit from a healthier deal environment, supported by a robust and diversified pipeline across regions and sectors.
Goldman’s Price Performance, Valuation, & Estimates
GS shares have jumped 40.3% in the past year compared with the industry’s growth of 22.5%.
Price Performance
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Goldman trades at a forward price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 14.42X, above the industry’s average of 13.94X.
Price-to-Earnings F12M
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for GS’s 2026 and 2027 earnings implies year-over-year rallies of 34.2% and 4.9%, respectively. Estimates for both years have been unchanged over the past month.
Estimate Revision Trend
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Goldman currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.