Goldman to Broaden ETF Presence Through Acquisition of Innovator Capital
Goldman Sachs Acquires Innovator Capital Management: Goldman Sachs has agreed to acquire Innovator Capital Management for approximately $2 billion, significantly enhancing its active ETF capabilities and expanding its asset management offerings to over $75 billion in total assets under supervision.
Strategic Shift Towards Asset Management: This acquisition aligns with Goldman’s strategy to diversify its revenue streams and reduce reliance on volatile investment banking, as it continues to build its asset and wealth management platform through innovative investment products.
Innovator's Integration and Future Plans: Innovator will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary within Goldman Sachs Asset Management, maintaining its existing investment management arrangements while integrating its defined outcome ETF suite into Goldman’s offerings.
Recent Market Performance: Goldman Sachs shares have increased by 34.7% over the past year, outperforming the industry average growth of 25.7%, reflecting strong market confidence in its strategic direction and acquisitions.
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- Executive Resignations: The release of Epstein-related documents by the U.S. Department of Justice has led to resignations from several high-profile executives, including the CEO of Dubai's largest port and Goldman Sachs' Chief Legal Officer, highlighting the severe impact of associations with Epstein on careers.
- Widespread Impact: These resignations not only affect individual careers but also pose potential reputational risks and operational challenges for the companies involved, especially in a climate where public sensitivity to sexual crimes is increasing.
- Political Repercussions: The government of UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is also affected, despite his lack of direct ties to Epstein, as this incident could undermine his political support and influence future policy decisions.
- Social Response: Epstein's case has sparked widespread public discourse on the relationship between power and sexual crimes, prompting greater scrutiny of the moral responsibilities and transparency of high-level individuals, which may lead to stricter regulatory measures.
- Optimistic Economic Outlook: Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon expressed in a CNBC interview that the economic backdrop for 2026 is “quite good,” highlighting fiscal support and AI-driven capital investments as key drivers for growth, indicating a resurgence in business activity and investment willingness.
- IPO Market Revival: Solomon noted that IPO discussions are heating up, with U.S. IPO proceeds potentially reaching $160 billion in 2026, a significant increase from $44 billion in 2025, reflecting strong demand and confidence in large transactions.
- Strong Performance from Big Banks: Goldman Sachs' latest earnings report revealed an EPS of $14.01, surpassing expectations despite the impact of exiting the Apple Card business, demonstrating the banks' ability to manage credit risk and maintain margins effectively.
- Increased M&A Activity: Goldman Sachs led the global M&A market with advisory transactions totaling $1.48 trillion in 2025, earning $4.6 billion in fees, indicating a renewed interest in strategic deals among corporations, with expectations for more large transactions in the near future.
- Trump's Appointment Mistake: Trump admitted in an interview that not appointing Kevin Warsh as Fed Chair was a “big mistake,” attributing this to the influence of his former Treasury Secretary, which could impact his political reputation.
- Fed Chair Selection Context: Warsh was initially Trump's choice, but ultimately Jerome Powell was appointed due to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin's persuasion, a decision that may have long-term implications for future monetary policy.
- Economic Burden Analysis: A report from the New York Fed revealed that 94% of the economic burden fell on U.S. importers, as the average tariff rate rose from 2.6% to 13%, yet foreign prices did not significantly drop, indicating the counterproductive effects of tariff policies.
- Job Data Revision: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. economy added 130,000 jobs in January, but a major revision saw the initial report of 467,000 jobs gained adjusted to a loss of 533,000, highlighting the fragility of economic recovery.
- AI Fears Hit Financial Stocks: Concerns over a new AI-driven tax planning feature led to significant declines in Wells Fargo and Capital One, with shares dropping over 7.4% and nearly 7% respectively, highlighting investor sensitivity to potential threats in the wealth management sector, although Wells Fargo's rating upgrade on Friday provided some stabilization.
- Strong Performance in Industrials: Stocks like Eaton, Honeywell, and GE have continued their strong performance in 2026, with Eaton's shares rising over 4% last week and up 22% year-to-date, reflecting market optimism about economic recovery and driving what Jim Cramer describes as an
- Oracle CEO Transaction: Oracle's CEO Clayton Magouyrk sold 10,000 shares between February 9 and 13 at an average price of $155.23 per share, totaling $1.55 million, while retaining 134,030 shares, indicating confidence in the company's future.
- Goldman Sachs Executives Divest: Goldman Sachs CFO Denis Coleman divested 11,623 shares in a price range of $933.38 to $945.4, generating proceeds of $10.94 million, and after the sale, he held 33,574 shares, reflecting a cautious stance amid market volatility.
- Delta Air Lines Executive Sale: Delta's EVP of Global Sales & Distribution, Steven Sears, sold 38,600 shares at an average price of $75.05, totaling $2.90 million, reducing his holdings to 104,404 shares, which may impact the company's future sales strategies.
- American Express CIO Sale: American Express CIO Ravi Radhakrishnan disposed of 15,000 shares between $356.14 and $357.13, generating $5.35 million in proceeds, while retaining 8,945 shares, indicating a short-term outlook on the company's stock price.
- Strategy Overview: Goldman Sachs has launched a software pair trade strategy aimed at profiting from long positions in firms perceived to be immune to advancements in artificial intelligence while shorting companies vulnerable to AI disruption, seeking to navigate market volatility.
- Long Positions: On the long side, Goldman selected companies such as Cloudflare, CrowdStrike, Palo Alto Networks, Oracle, and Microsoft, which are seen as beneficiaries in building AI infrastructure and providing security defenses, expected to thrive amid future market demand.
- Short Positions: Conversely, on the short side, Goldman chose companies like Monday.com, Salesforce, DocuSign, Accenture, and Duolingo, noting that their operations are easily replaceable by AI automation, reflecting concerns about their future performance.
- Market Context: This investment strategy comes amid a year-to-date underperformance of software stocks, with the SPDR S&P Software ETF down approximately 19% this year while the S&P 500 remains flat, indicating expectations of a performance divide in the software sector.








