Embattled Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon is expected to get an earful next week from “upset” shareholders over the Wall Street banking giant’s sagging earnings.
Solomon’s stewardship of the $124 billion operation has drawn more intense scrutiny in recent weeks after the firm reported a steep drop in revenue and laid off some 3,200 bankers in what staffers dubbed “David’s Demolition Day.”
Goldman’s backers are now eager to hear Solomon layout his plans moving forward during the company’s second-ever investor day next Tuesday at its 200 West Street headquarters in Manhattan.
Rasmus Lee Hansen — a portfolio manager at asset management firm AllianceBernstein, who also happens to be among Goldman’s 20 largest shareholders — said he wants to hear a “humble presentation” from Solomon.
Hansen also wants Solomon to acknowledge that Goldman fumbled its handling of Marcus, the online retail banking operation that was shut down after failing to generate profit, according to the Financial Times.
He hopes the CEO will emphasize a return to the business’ bread-and-butter formula, which includes investment banking, wealth and asset management, and underwriting initial public offerings.
“Now the right choice is to scale back on [the consumer bet] and continue with the ‘old Goldman’,” Hansen told the outlet Monday. “I think they would get points for that.”
Another investor said he was dismayed over reported unrest among the rank-and-file at Goldman.
“Anytime people are upset, it’s relevant,” the investor, who was quoted anonymous, told FT.
“You would hope he hears his employees.”
Shareholders attending next the meeting will see plenty of new faces among Goldman’s senior leadership.
The first-ever “investor day,” which took place three years ago, featured 26 speakers — more than a third of whom have moved on from the bank, according to FT.
A spokesperson for Goldman Sachs told The Post: “We’ve set a clear strategic direction and we’re looking forward to discussing our progress at Investor Day.”
The bank told FT that it was “looking forward to investor day” during which it hopes to “help investors see the strategic direction going forward.”
Shares of Goldman Sachs were trading around 1.8% lower as of 10:30 a.m. Eastern time on Tuesday.
Solomon, who was forced to take a 30% pay cut as a result of the bank’s poor performance, recently complained that staffers were leaking information to the press and thus “damaging” the reputation of the company.
At a partners meeting in Miami this month, Solomon admitted that he erred by not slashing headcount early last year. His comments came in light of recent reports suggesting that he is distracted by his beloved hobby as an amateur DJ.
Goldman staffers have griped that Solomon has been asking bank personnel to help him manage his music schedule.
[Written in collaboration with other media outlets with information from the following sources]
