Beta Finch - S&P 100 - EN

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
──────────
**BETA FINCH PODCAST SCRIPT**

---

ALEX: Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown. I'm Alex.

JORDAN: And I'm Jordan. Today we're diving into IBM's Q4 2025 earnings, and wow - this might be the strongest quarter we've seen from Big Blue in over a decade.

ALEX: Before we get started, I need to mention that this podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

JORDAN: Absolutely. Now Alex, let's talk numbers because IBM just delivered some pretty impressive results. What caught your eye first?

ALEX: The headline number is huge - 9% revenue growth in Q4, which is their highest in over three years. But what's really striking is the full-year performance. They hit 6% revenue growth for 2025, which might not sound earth-shattering, but for IBM, this represents their best year in ages.

JORDAN: And the cash generation story is even better. They generated $14.7 billion in free cash flow - that's their highest level in over a decade and represents their best free cash flow margin in their 114-year history. That's not a typo, folks - 114 years.

ALEX: Let's break down what's driving this transformation. CEO Arvind Krishna has been repositioning IBM as a software-led company, and it's really paying off. Software now represents 45% of their business, up from just 25% back in 2018.

JORDAN: The software segment is where the magic is happening. It grew 11% in Q4 and 9% for the full year - which Krishna called their highest annual software growth rate in history. Three of their four software sub-segments hit double-digit growth.

ALEX: What's particularly interesting is their AI strategy. Their cumulative Gen AI book of business now stands at over $12.5 billion. That's split between more than $2 billion in software and over $10.5 billion in consulting.

JORDAN: But here's the kicker - this is the last quarter they're going to report that Gen AI metric separately. CFO Jim Kavanaugh said AI is now so embedded across their entire business that a standalone metric doesn't capture the full value anymore.

ALEX: That's actually a smart move. It shows they're not treating AI as a separate product line but as a foundational technology that enhances everything they do. Speaking of which, their mainframe business had an absolute monster year.

JORDAN: The Z17 mainframe launch has been phenomenal. Infrastructure revenue grew 17% in Q4, with IBM Z up 61% year-over-year. Krishna mentioned this represents the highest annual revenue for their mainframe business in about twenty years.

ALEX: What's fascinating about the mainframe story is how they're positioning it for the AI era. The Z17 can process 50% more AI inferencing operations per day than the previous generation, and it brings real-time AI capabilities directly into the mainframe environment.

JORDAN: That's a key differentiator. Instead of having to send data off-platform for AI processing - which takes seconds - they can do it inline in milliseconds. For financial institutions and other mission-critical applications, that speed difference is game-changing.

ALEX: Let's talk acquisitions because that's been a big part of their strategy. They're in the process of acquiring Confluent, which should close by mid-2026. Kavanaugh expects about $600 million in dilution from that deal initially.

JORDAN: But they're confident it'll be accretive to adjusted EBITDA within the first full year. This follows their successful HashiCorp acquisition, which delivered record bookings and is already ahead of accretion expectations.

ALEX: The productivity story is remarkable too. They originally set a goal to achieve $2 billion in productivity savings by the end of 2024. They're now at $4.5 billion in annual run-rate savings and expect to hit

This episode includes AI-generated content.

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
Groups: INDUSTRIALS (https://betafinch.com/groups/INDUSTRIALS)
──────────
ALEX: Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown. I'm Alex, joined as always by Jordan, and today we're digging into Honeywell Technologies' second quarter 2026 results — the first full quarter as a newly independent, pure-play automation company.

JORDAN: Big quarter for them structurally. And hey — quick note before we get into it: this podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

ALEX: Right, so let's set the scene. Honeywell Aerospace spun off on June 29th, so what we're looking at now is the "new" Honeywell Technologies — Building Automation, Industrial Automation, and Process Automation and Technology, or PA&T. They also just closed the Johnson Matthey Catalyst Technologies acquisition on July 17th, and there's a one-for-two reverse stock split baked into these numbers, so EPS comparisons look a little different than what people are used to.

JORDAN: Lots of moving parts. But strip all that away and the underlying story is pretty strong. Organic sales grew 4% for the quarter, and orders — this is the number that jumped out at me — grew 16% organically, broad-based across every segment. That pushed backlog up 9%.

ALEX: And margins expanded too — segment margin up 100 basis points to 19%, even with cost inflation and some unfavorable mix working against them. Adjusted EPS came in at $1.95, up 10% year-over-year.

JORDAN: What's notable is where the strength came from. Building Automation was the standout — 9% organic growth, margins up 90 basis points to 27.1%. That's seven quarters running of high-single-digit-plus growth. Industrial Automation actually beat expectations too, up 4% overall, with the core business — excluding the divestitures they're wrapping up — growing 2%.

ALEX: Meanwhile Process Automation and Technology actually declined 1% organically, mostly due to a tough prior-year comparison in catalyst shipments. But management was clear: that's the segment they expect to inflect hardest in the second half, with orders up 24% and process technology orders up nearly 50%.

JORDAN: Which is why they raised guidance across the board. Full-year organic growth is now guided to 3-4%, up from 2-3%. Segment margin expansion bumped to 250-290 basis points. And full-year adjusted EPS guidance moved up to $8.20 at the midpoint, from $8.10 — that's roughly 27% growth versus last year.

ALEX: Let's talk strategy for a second, because CEO Vimal Kapur spent a lot of time on the June Investor Day recap. The three-year targets are ambitious — roughly $12 of adjusted EPS by 2029, more than 200 basis points of margin expansion just from stranded cost removal and portfolio actions, plus 60 basis points a year of operational margin gains on top of that.

JORDAN: And the Johnson Matthey deal fits right into that install-base strategy — it's about 13 times EBITDA based on 2027 earnings, and management was upfront that the price reflects cost synergies only. Kapur was pretty emphatic on the call that the real upside is revenue synergies — combining catalyst and process technology into a single offering, especially in hydrogen, ammonia, and sustainable aviation fuel.

ALEX: The Q&A had some good color too. One analyst pushed on the Middle East, given all the geopolitical noise. CFO Mike Stepniak said they did see some collection issues in March and April, but things have normalized, and they're still expecting high-single-digit revenue growth there for the year, with orders up around 40%.

JORDAN: Kapur's answer on that stuck with me — he said Honeywell didn't evacuate a single employee during the conflict because their Middle East workforce is almost entirely local. That's a real competitive moat ver

This episode includes AI-generated content.

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
Groups: INDUSTRIALS (https://betafinch.com/groups/INDUSTRIALS)
──────────
# Beta Finch Podcast Script: Honeywell Q1 2026 Earnings

**ALEX:** Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown! I'm Alex, and I'm here with my co-host Jordan to dive into Honeywell's first quarter 2026 results. Now, before we get started, I need to mention that this podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

**JORDAN:** Thanks Alex. And what a quarter to cover! This might be the last time we see Honeywell as we know it, with that massive aerospace spin-off coming up. But let's start with the numbers - how did they perform?

**ALEX:** The headline numbers were actually pretty solid. Honeywell posted adjusted earnings per share of $2.45, up 11% year-over-year. Revenue grew 2% organically, which might sound modest, but given all the geopolitical chaos they're navigating, it's actually quite impressive. Segment margins expanded a whopping 90 basis points to 23.3%.

**JORDAN:** That margin expansion really caught my eye too. But Alex, we need to talk about the elephant in the room - they're basically splitting into two companies. The aerospace spin-off is happening June 29th. That's like, eight weeks away!

**ALEX:** Exactly! CEO Vimal Kapur called this a "momentous day" - the last quarter of Honeywell as we know it. They've already raised $20 billion in financing for the aerospace spinoff and secured strong investment-grade credit ratings. It's fascinating to watch this massive industrial conglomerate break itself apart.

**JORDAN:** And speaking of breaking apart, they're also selling off two other businesses - Productivity Solutions and Services to Brady Corporation, and their Warehouse and Workflow business to American Industrial Partners. It's like they're Marie Kondo-ing their entire portfolio.

**ALEX:** Ha! "Does this business unit spark joy?" But seriously, the strategic rationale makes sense. After all these moves, the remaining Honeywell will be a pure-play automation company focused on three main areas: building automation, industrial automation, and process automation.

**JORDAN:** Let's dig into the segment performance because there were some real mixed signals here. Building Automation was the star - 8% organic growth, margins expanding. But then you had some challenges elsewhere, right?

**ALEX:** Right. Aerospace had supply chain hiccups that really hurt their first quarter. Sales only grew 3% organically when they were expecting much more. The interesting part was how specific and acute these problems were - CEO Jim Courier said they could identify it down to specific line items in their mechanical products business.

**JORDAN:** That's actually somewhat reassuring, isn't it? If you can pinpoint the exact problem, you can theoretically fix it faster than if it's some broad, systemic issue.

**ALEX:** Exactly. And they did see improvement in March - in fact, March was their highest revenue month of the quarter. They're maintaining their full-year aerospace guidance of high single-digit growth, betting that these supply chain issues were temporary.

**JORDAN:** Now, the other big story here is the Middle East conflict. How much is that impacting their business?

**ALEX:** It's significant, especially for their Process Automation and Technology segment. They're seeing about a 0.5% revenue impact to the overall company in Q1, expected to be about 1% in Q2. Most of that is hitting their higher-margin services and software business because, obviously, you can't exactly send technicians into active conflict zones.

**JORDAN:** But here's what's interesting - management seems almost bullish about the long-term opportunity this creates. They talk about three phases: immediate services to

This episode includes AI-generated content.

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
Groups: INDUSTRIALS (https://betafinch.com/groups/INDUSTRIALS)
──────────
**BETA FINCH PODCAST SCRIPT**

---

ALEX: Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown where we turn quarterly reports into conversations that actually make sense. I'm Alex.

JORDAN: And I'm Jordan. Before we dive in, this podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

ALEX: Today we're breaking down Honeywell's Q4 2025 earnings call, and wow - there's a lot happening at this industrial giant. Jordan, where do we even start with this one?

JORDAN: Alex, this is probably one of the busiest transformation stories we've covered. Honeywell is essentially splitting itself into three separate companies while posting some pretty impressive numbers. Let's start with the financial highlights because they're actually quite strong.

ALEX: Right, so Q4 revenue grew 11% organically, or 6% if you exclude this Bombardier agreement impact they keep mentioning. What really caught my attention was their orders growth - up 23% in the quarter. That's huge for an industrial company.

JORDAN: Exactly, and that massive order growth pushed their backlog to over $37 billion, which is a new record. CEO Vimal Kapur seemed pretty excited about this, calling it validation of their market positions. But here's what I find interesting - they're guiding for 2026 organic sales growth of just 3% to 6%. That seems conservative given the order strength, doesn't it?

ALEX: It does feel conservative, but I think management is being cautious about the macro environment. They're seeing some weakness in Europe and China, particularly in their industrial automation business. CFO Mike Stepniak mentioned that different regions are performing very differently - the US and Middle East are strong, but Europe is just "okay."

JORDAN: And speaking of regional differences, let's talk about their pricing power. Honeywell has been capturing about 4% price increases, which is well above their historical 1-2% range. Kapur explained this isn't just tariff pass-throughs - they're seeing persistent inflation in labor costs, electronics, and commodities that's forcing a more mature pricing strategy.

ALEX: That's a key point because sustainable pricing power often separates great industrial companies from average ones. Now, Jordan, let's dive into this massive portfolio transformation they're executing. Can you walk our listeners through what's happening?

JORDAN: Sure. So Honeywell is essentially breaking itself apart. They already spun off their Advanced Materials business in October - that's now trading as Solstice. Next up, they're spinning off Aerospace in Q3 2026, which is actually ahead of their original timeline. They've already named the leadership team for that spin-off.

ALEX: And they're not stopping there. They announced they're selling their Productivity Solutions and Services business plus their Warehouse and Workflow Solutions. Kapur said they expect to sign deals in Q2. What's the strategic logic here?

JORDAN: It's all about focus and growth rates, Alex. By shedding these businesses, Honeywell is essentially choosing to exit the transportation, logistics, and warehouse markets to concentrate on three core areas: process automation, buildings, and industrial sensing. The remaining industrial automation business becomes much simpler - basically a sensing and measurement company.

ALEX: That makes sense. Sometimes less really is more in the corporate world. Now, there was some interesting discussion about their quantum computing venture, Quantinuum. This isn't your typical industrial business unit.

JORDAN: Not at all! Quantinuum just raised $840 million at a $10 billion valuation and launched something called Helios, which they claim is

This episode includes AI-generated content.

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
Groups: RETAIL (https://betafinch.com/groups/RETAIL)
──────────
**BETA FINCH — HOME DEPOT (HD) Q2 FISCAL 2026 EARNINGS BREAKDOWN**

---

ALEX: Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown. I'm Alex, joined as always by Jordan. Today we're digging into Home Depot's second quarter fiscal 2026 results, reported August 18th.

JORDAN: Good one to cover — there's a lot going on here beyond the headline numbers.

ALEX: There is. But before we get into it, quick disclaimer: this podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

JORDAN: Good to have that out of the way. So, Alex, where do we start?

ALEX: Let's start with the top line. Home Depot posted $47.9 billion in sales for the quarter, up 5.7% year-over-year. Comp sales — that's sales at stores open at least a year — grew 1.7% company-wide, with U.S. comps up 1.3%. Adjusted diluted EPS came in at $4.92, versus $4.68 a year ago.

JORDAN: And importantly, management said results actually exceeded their own internal expectations. That's notable in this environment — housing turnover is sitting at historic lows, and big discretionary remodels are still under pressure. So beating expectations here is really a story about smaller projects.

ALEX: Right, this was very much a "repair and maintenance" quarter. Think storage, electrical, hardware, plumbing — 13 of their 16 merchandising departments posted positive comps. Big, expensive kitchen and bath remodels? Still soft. But the bread-and-butter stuff is holding up well.

JORDAN: What stood out to me is the ticket versus transaction split. Average ticket was up 2.8%, but transactions were actually down 1%. So people are spending more per visit, but fewer people are walking through the door. Big-ticket purchases over $1,000 were up 2.4%, which tells you there's still some appetite for larger single-item purchases — think appliances, portable power tools — even if it's not full-blown renovation spending.

ALEX: Speaking of portable power, Billy Bastek, their merchandising EVP, called Q2 a record-setting quarter for portable power tools. That's been a real bright spot along with patio and, interestingly, appliances — where they've built out next-day delivery to nearly 60% of the population.

JORDAN: Let's talk about the tariff piece, because this got a lot of analyst attention on the call. Home Depot received $730 million in IEEPA tariff refunds during the quarter, and $685 million of that flowed through to reduce cost of goods sold. That gave gross margin a roughly 145 basis point lift.

ALEX: But — and this is the important nuance — that benefit was mostly offset by rising costs elsewhere. About 60 basis points of pressure from fuel, energy, and other input costs, plus another 60 basis points of margin dilution just from the mix effect of the GMS acquisition. Net-net, gross margin only rose about 25 basis points to 33.7%.

JORDAN: CFO Richard McPhail was pretty direct about this — he said even without the tariff refund, they'd have beaten expectations anyway, it just would've shown up differently. He's basically pre-empting the narrative that Home Depot "missed" underlying profitability and needed the refund to bail them out.

ALEX: Which makes sense given how the stock commentary was framing it going into the call. Now, strategically, the two big themes this quarter were the Pro customer and interconnected retail — meaning online, delivery, in-store tech all working together.

JORDAN: The Pro business had a positive comp and actually outperformed DIY, which is a real accomplishment given how much of the housing market is frozen right now. A lot of that comes down to SRS Distribution and the GMS acquisition — those are the specialty distributors Home Depot has folded in to better s

This episode includes AI-generated content.

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
Groups: RETAIL (https://betafinch.com/groups/RETAIL)
──────────
**WELCOME TO BETA FINCH: HOME DEPOT Q2 2026**

ALEX: Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown. I'm Alex, joined as always by Jordan, and today we're digging into Home Depot's second quarter fiscal 2026 numbers. Big one — the world's largest home improvement retailer, a lot of moving pieces this quarter.

JORDAN: Lots to get into, including some tariff refund math that tripped up a few analysts on the call.

ALEX: We'll get there. But first, the standard disclosure: this podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

JORDAN: Good to have that on record. So, headline numbers — Home Depot posted $47.9 billion in sales, up 5.7% year-over-year. Comp sales up 1.7% overall, 1.3% in the U.S. specifically.

ALEX: And adjusted diluted EPS came in at $4.92, versus $4.68 a year ago. That actually beat expectations — management said the quarter exceeded what they'd planned for.

JORDAN: Worth noting right up top — before the numbers, CFO Richard McPhail addressed CEO Ted Decker's temporary medical leave of absence. Leadership wished him a quick recovery and said Ann-Marie Campbell and the broader team are steering the ship in the meantime.

ALEX: Good context to have. Now let's talk about what actually drove the quarter, because it's a broader story than just "big box retailer sells more stuff." Thirteen of sixteen merchandising departments posted positive comps — storage, electrical, hardware, power tools, plumbing, paint, flooring, you name it.

JORDAN: And it wasn't just seasonal stuff either. Merchandising EVP Billy Bastek made a point of saying only 3 of their top 20 performing categories were seasonal — the "middle of the store," as he called it, core home improvement categories, is where the real strength showed up.

ALEX: Portable power was a standout — Q2 was literally a record-setting quarter for portable power tools. And Pro customers outperformed DIY again, continuing a trend we've heard from Home Depot for a while now.

JORDAN: The Pro story is interesting because it's not just one thing — it's an ecosystem play. QuoteCenter, the SRS acquisition, GMS, purchase cards — they're stitching all of this together so a Pro can basically source everything through the Home Depot family instead of shopping around. Ann-Marie Campbell said 90% of stores closed a sale through SRS's catalog in the last 12 months.

ALEX: That's a real flywheel if it keeps compounding. And on the digital side — online comp sales grew 11%, the fifth straight quarter of double-digit growth. They also launched Express Delivery nationwide this month — three-hour delivery on tens of thousands of products, with most actually arriving in under an hour.

JORDAN: That's a meaningful shift. Delivery lead times are down about 45% over the last 18 months. For a company built on people driving to an orange box store, leaning this hard into fast delivery — including big and bulky items and even next-day appliance delivery in some markets — signals they're taking the fight to online-only competitors pretty seriously.

ALEX: Now, let's talk about the part of the call that generated the most back-and-forth — gross margin and tariffs.

JORDAN: Right, so this is the one investors were parsing closely. Home Depot received $730 million in IEEPA tariff refunds this quarter, and $685 million of that flowed through and reduced cost of goods sold. That gave gross margin a roughly 145 basis point boost.

ALEX: But — and this is the nuance — that benefit was largely offset by rising costs elsewhere. About 60 basis points of pressure from fuel, energy, and other input costs, plus another 60 basis points from a mix shift tied to the GMS acquisition. Net-net, gross

This episode includes AI-generated content.

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
Groups: RETAIL (https://betafinch.com/groups/RETAIL)
──────────
# Beta Finch Podcast Script - Home Depot Q1 2026 Earnings

**ALEX:** Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown where we turn corporate speak into plain English. I'm Alex, and I'm here with my co-host Jordan to dive into Home Depot's first quarter 2026 results.

Before we get started, I need to mention that this podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

**JORDAN:** Thanks Alex. And wow, what a quarter to unpack from the home improvement giant. Home Depot just reported $41.8 billion in sales - that's up 4.8% year-over-year. But the real story is in the details, isn't it?

**ALEX:** Absolutely. The headline numbers look decent, but when you dig deeper, you can see the challenges they're facing. Comparable store sales were only up 0.6% - barely positive. And here's what's interesting about the monthly breakdown: February was up 0.7%, March jumped to positive 2%, but then April went negative 0.5%.

**JORDAN:** That April drop really tells a story about weather impact and consumer behavior. CEO Ted Decker mentioned that when weather was favorable in the Northern and Western divisions, customers engaged in outdoor projects. But those bigger discretionary projects? Still under pressure. It's like consumers are buying the essentials but holding back on major renovations.

**ALEX:** The earnings picture reflects that cautiousness too. Adjusted diluted earnings per share came in at $3.43, down from $3.56 last year. That's about a 3.7% decline. And gross margins? They dropped 75 basis points to 33%, largely due to the GMS acquisition they completed.

**JORDAN:** Let's talk about that GMS acquisition because it's reshaping their entire strategy. Home Depot is going all-in on the professional contractor market. They just completed the Mingledorff's acquisition too - that's an HVAC distributor with 42 locations across five southeastern states.

**ALEX:** This is fascinating from a strategic standpoint. Ted Decker laid out some impressive numbers - they're targeting a $700 billion professional market opportunity. With all their acquisitions, they now have over 1,300 branches through SRS, plus their 2,360+ stores. That's a delivery fleet of about 16,000 assets and over 5,000 professional sales associates.

**JORDAN:** The HVAC move is particularly smart. HVAC distribution represents about a $100 billion addressable market, which brings their total addressable market to $1.2 trillion. And here's the key - HVAC is more repair and replacement focused rather than new construction, which fits perfectly with the current market environment.

**ALEX:** Speaking of market environment, there was a revealing exchange during the Q&A. When analysts pressed about whether they'd consider lowering guidance given rising interest rates and energy prices, CFO Richard McPhail stood firm. They reaffirmed their comp sales guidance of flat to 2% growth.

**JORDAN:** That confidence is interesting because the housing market backdrop is still challenging. Existing home sales are below $4 million, HELOC activity has plateaued, and mortgage rates remain elevated. But Decker made a compelling point about their core customer - these are homeowners who saw their home values jump 50% over recent years and have healthy equity portfolios.

**ALEX:** The Pro business performance really stands out too. Billy Bastek, their merchandising chief, noted that Pro posted positive comps and outperformed DIY customers. Nine of their 16 merchandising departments had positive comps, including power tools, plumbing, electrical, and paint.

**JORDAN:** And their digital strategy is paying off. Online sales leveraging their digital platforms grew over 10% - that

This episode includes AI-generated content.

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
Groups: BANKS (https://betafinch.com/groups/BANKS)
──────────
ALEX: Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown, bringing you the numbers and the narrative behind them. I'm Alex.

JORDAN: And I'm Jordan. And Alex, we've got Goldman Sachs Q2 2026, and this one's a doozy.

ALEX: It really is — but before we dive in, quick disclaimer: this podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

JORDAN: Good, let's get into it. Record quarter, full stop. $20.3 billion in net revenues, record EPS of $20.98, ROE of 23.5%, ROTE of 25.5%. Those are eye-popping numbers for a bank this size.

ALEX: Every single segment contributed. Global Banking & Markets alone hit a record $15.5 billion. Advisory revenue up 17% year-over-year — and get this, Goldman crossed $1 trillion in announced M&A volume in just six months, first bank ever to do that.

JORDAN: And they're not just winning deals, they're winning them by a mile. $425 billion ahead of the next closest competitor in announced M&A. That's not a lead, that's a lap.

ALEX: Equity underwriting revenue up 130%, debt underwriting up 75% — best quarter on record there. A lot of that tied to marquee names too — they were lead bookrunner on the SpaceX IPO and the Alphabet equity raise.

JORDAN: But honestly, the number that made me do a double-take was equities trading. Record $7.4 billion, with intermediation revenue up 60% and equity financing up 91%. CFO Denis Coleman basically said this is the payoff from a multi-year bet on building out their Asia prime brokerage business.

ALEX: Right, and analysts pushed hard on that in Q&A — is this sustainable, or is it a couple of huge clients driving the number? Coleman pushed back, saying it's broad-based across long-short and quant clients globally, not concentrated in a handful of accounts.

JORDAN: FICC was strong too — $4.6 billion, up 32%, with financing revenue hitting a record. Across FICC and equities combined, financing now makes up 37% of total revenue there. Goldman's essentially been turning its balance sheet into a growth engine.

ALEX: Let's talk Asset & Wealth Management, because that story's just as interesting. Revenue up 20% year-over-year to $4.6 billion, 34th straight quarter of long-term net inflows, total assets under supervision crossed $4 trillion for the first time.

JORDAN: And alternatives fundraising — $59 billion in the quarter, $85 billion year-to-date. They actually raised their full-year fundraising guidance to over $125 billion. $31 billion of that was private credit alone this quarter.

ALEX: They also picked up two massive OCIO mandates — Verizon and Lockheed Martin's retirement plans, $70 billion combined in assets. That's the kind of sticky, fee-generating business that makes this segment more durable over time.

JORDAN: Now, the through-line for this whole call was really the AI infrastructure buildout. CEO David Solomon kept coming back to it — data centers, energy, chips, the whole ecosystem is pulling in capital far beyond traditional tech financing, and Goldman's positioning itself as the plumbing for that capital.

ALEX: He was refreshingly honest about the risk side too. When asked directly about bubble concerns, Solomon said, essentially, "I'm not smart enough to tell you if there's a recalibration coming in six or eighteen months, but over three to five years, we're investing in long-term growth." He didn't dodge the question, but he didn't overpromise either.

JORDAN: That was a theme all call — a lot of "this won't be a straight line, there'll be bumps." Which, from a bank CEO in the middle of a record quarter, is actually a pretty disciplined thing to say out loud.

ALEX: One more Q&A moment worth flagging — Mike Mayo asked about the "multiplier eff

This episode includes AI-generated content.

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
Groups: BANKS (https://betafinch.com/groups/BANKS)
──────────
**BETA FINCH PODCAST SCRIPT**

---

**ALEX:** Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown where we dive deep into the numbers that matter. I'm Alex, and as always, I'm joined by my co-host Jordan. Today we're unpacking Goldman Sachs' absolutely stellar Q1 2026 results that just dropped.

Before we dive in, I need to mention that this podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

Jordan, these numbers are pretty eye-popping. What jumped out at you first?

**JORDAN:** Alex, Goldman just delivered their second-highest quarterly performance in company history. We're talking $17.2 billion in net revenues, $5.6 billion in net earnings, and earnings per share of $17.55. That drove a return on equity of nearly 20% at 19.8%. These are numbers that would make any CFO jealous.

**ALEX:** That ROE is particularly impressive. And what's driving this performance? It seems like their Global Banking & Markets division is firing on all cylinders.

**JORDAN:** Absolutely. Global Banking & Markets hit record quarterly revenues of $12.7 billion with an ROE over 22%. The standout here is equities, which generated a record $5.3 billion in revenues. Their equities financing business alone brought in $2.6 billion - that's up 59% year-over-year.

**ALEX:** Now, there's an interesting geographic story here too, right? Goldman's been talking about Asia as a growth opportunity.

**JORDAN:** Exactly. CEO David Solomon specifically highlighted their progress in Asia, particularly in prime brokerage. They saw record average prime balances during the quarter, and this Asia expansion is a key part of their strategy to close competitive gaps in certain regions. It's paying off - financing revenues across FICC and equities now comprise nearly 40% of total revenues in those divisions.

**ALEX:** Let's talk about the investment banking side. They maintained their number one position in M&A globally, but there are some interesting crosscurrents in the market.

**JORDAN:** Right. Advisory revenues jumped 89% year-over-year to $1.5 billion on higher completed volumes. They're sitting on some massive deals - like the $43 billion Unilever-McCormick merger and Sysco's $29 billion Jetro acquisition. What's really telling is that even after executing on extraordinary deal flow this quarter, their backlog remained "extraordinarily robust" according to Solomon.

**ALEX:** But not everything was smooth sailing. There was some softness in certain areas, and geopolitical tensions seemed to weigh on markets toward the end of the quarter.

**JORDAN:** That's right. Solomon noted that while Q1 started optimistically with markets hitting record highs, the macro environment began weighing on sentiment as the quarter progressed. Volatility increased meaningfully due to AI-driven disruption concerns, uncertainty in parts of private credit, and the Middle East conflict. This particularly impacted IPO activity in March.

**ALEX:** Speaking of private credit - this has been a hot-button issue in the market lately. How did Goldman address the concerns?

**JORDAN:** Solomon was pretty direct about this. He pointed out that while private credit broadly is about $3.5 trillion, the direct lending space getting all the negative attention is around $1.6-1.7 trillion, with only about 20% or $230 billion in retail NAV. Goldman's platform is over 80% institutional investors with very broad diversification.

Interestingly, he noted that 40% of their Q1 subscriptions in their credit BDC came from institutions, many first-time investors including insurance companies and pension funds.

**ALEX:** What was his take on potential credit cycles and losses?

**JORDAN:** He provided

This episode includes AI-generated content.

More earnings analysis: https://betafinch.com
Groups: BANKS (https://betafinch.com/groups/BANKS)
──────────
# Beta Finch Podcast Script: Goldman Sachs Q4 2025 Earnings

**ALEX**: Welcome to Beta Finch, your AI-powered earnings breakdown where we dive deep into the numbers that move markets. I'm Alex, and joining me as always is my co-host Jordan. Today we're unpacking Goldman Sachs' fourth quarter 2025 results, and wow, what a quarter this was.

Before we jump in, I need to share our standard disclaimer: This podcast is AI-generated content for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing we discuss should be considered investment advice. Always do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.

Jordan, Goldman absolutely crushed it this quarter - $14.01 earnings per share, 16% ROE. Walk us through these headline numbers.

**JORDAN**: Alex, these results are genuinely impressive. For the full year, they delivered $51.32 in earnings per share - that's a 27% increase year-over-year. Their return on equity hit 15% for the full year and 16% return on tangible equity. But here's what really caught my attention - since their 2020 investor day, they've increased firm-wide revenues by roughly 60% and grown EPS by 144%. That's execution at scale.

**ALEX**: And they're clearly feeling confident about their position. CEO David Solomon was pretty bullish on the call, talking about how they've maintained their number one M&A adviser position for 23 consecutive years. That's remarkable staying power. But Jordan, there was some significant news buried in these results - what's the story with Apple Card?

**JORDAN**: Right, so Goldman announced they're transitioning the Apple Card portfolio. This had a net positive impact of $0.46 to EPS this quarter because while they took a $2.3 billion revenue reduction, they released $2.5 billion in reserves. Solomon called this one of their "final steps to narrow strategic focus." They're clearly trying to get out of the consumer lending business and refocus on their core strengths.

**ALEX**: Speaking of strategic focus, they laid out some pretty ambitious targets for their asset and wealth management business. What stood out to you there?

**JORDAN**: This was huge, Alex. They're increasing their pretax margin target for asset and wealth management to 30%, which they say will drive high-teen returns in that segment. They now have $3.6 trillion in assets under supervision, and they're targeting 5% long-term fee-based net inflows annually in wealth management. Solomon emphasized they see this as a massive growth opportunity - their current market share in ultra-high-net-worth is only mid-single digits despite being the leader.

**ALEX**: The investment banking outlook seems particularly interesting. They mentioned their backlog is at a four-year high. What's driving that optimism?

**JORDAN**: Solomon was really bullish here. He talked about several catalysts - corporate focus on scale and innovation, massive capital flows into AI, and increased sponsor activity. Get this - sponsors are sitting on about $1 trillion of dry powder and have roughly $4 trillion of value across their portfolio companies. Goldman's betting big that 2026 will see significant M&A activity. Solomon even suggested that in a base case scenario for M&A volumes, we could approach 2021 levels.

**ALEX**: Now, one thing that came up repeatedly was this "One Goldman Sachs 3.0" initiative powered by AI. This sounds pretty transformative, but Solomon was notably cautious about providing specific metrics. What's your read on this?

**JORDAN**: Yeah, that was interesting. Solomon emphasized this isn't about transforming the whole firm - it's about driving productivity and efficiency. They've identified six specific processes to attack with AI-driven redesign. He was pretty honest that he hoped to provide more transparency on this call but wasn't ready yet. The goal is to free up

This episode includes AI-generated content.