Goldman Sachs (GS) is advancing today after the investment bank reported higher-than-expected fourth-quarter revenue and earnings per share, driven by the strength of its stock-trading business.

The shares are changing hands close to their 52-week high of $612.73.

A Look at Goldman's Q4 Results

Goldman delivered Q4 EPS of $11.95, $3.60 above analysts' average estimate. Its top line came in at $13.87 billion, $1.4 billion above the mean outlook.

Its bottom line jumped over 100% versus the same period a year earlier to $4.1 billion, while the firm's sales advanced 22.5% year-over-year.

Among the bright spots for Goldman in Q4 were its investment banking business and its wealth-management unit.

The investment bank noted that its book value per share had advanced 7.4% in 2024 to $336.77.

Going forward, the firm expects its future financial results to be boosted by other companies' increased confidence and less onerous regulations.

“I’m encouraged that we have met or exceeded almost all of the targets we set in our strategy to grow the firm five years ago,” CEO David Solomon said in a statement.

The Price Action of GS Stock

In the last month, GS has climbed 10%, while it has advanced 14% in the previous three months.

While we acknowledge the potential of GS, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than GS but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ ALSO 8 Best Wide Moat Stocks to Buy Now and 30 Most Important AI Stocks According to BlackRock

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.