Brokers and exchanges · 17/36 against 18/36 checks · to 2026-09-08
GS vs SCHW.
Goldman SachsAn investment bank: advising on deals, trading in markets and managing money for institutions.
Charles SchwabThe largest US retail broker and custodian, earning most of its money on client cash.→Goldman Sachs (GS) and Charles Schwab (SCHW) are within reach of each other at $301.8B and $184.8B, and on the filings Charles Schwab passes more, 18 checks of 36 against 17.
Which passes more checks?
widest gap first→No axis separates them by more than 2 of six checks, and the widest is Health.
| GS | SCHW | |
|---|---|---|
| Health | 1/6 | 3/6 |
| Value | 2/6 | 1/6 |
| Growth | 4/6 | 3/6 |
| Quality | 2/6 | 3/6 |
| Shareholder returns | 5/6 | 5/6 |
| Trend analysis | 3/6 | 3/6 |
| All checks | 17/36 | 18/36 |
→Goldman Sachs turns over $66.2B to Charles Schwab's $26.0B, 2.5 times as much. Goldman Sachs keeps 31.7% of revenue as profit against 4.8% at Charles Schwab.
Which balance sheet is stronger?
| GS | SCHW | |
|---|---|---|
| Debt / equity | - | 0.73x |
| Interest coverage | - | - |
| Cash and short-term investments | $187.3B | $40.6B |
Which is cheaper?
→Goldman Sachs is the cheaper of the two on earnings, 15.7x against 154.3x. Against their own histories, Goldman Sachs is above its 9.6x median and Charles Schwab is above its 24.9x.
| GS | SCHW | |
|---|---|---|
| Share price | $1036.53 | $106.87 |
| Market cap | $301.8B | $184.8B |
| P/E | 15.7x | 154.3x |
| P/E, own median own 11-year median / own 11-year median | 9.6x | 24.9x |
| P/S | 4.6x | 7.1x |
| Free cash flow yield | -13.8% | 5.8% |
Which is growing faster, GS or SCHW?
→Charles Schwab grew revenue faster last year, +20.3% against +17.8% at Goldman Sachs - 3 points apart. Over three years the order is the same, Goldman Sachs at +7.2% and Charles Schwab at +4.8%.
| GS | SCHW | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue (TTM) | $66.2B | $26.0B |
| Revenue growth, 1 year | +17.8% | +20.3% |
| Revenue CAGR, 3 years | +7.2% | +4.8% |
| Net income (TTM) | $21.0B | $1.3B |
| Free cash flow (TTM) | $-41.5B | $10.8B |
Which keeps more of each sale?
| GS | SCHW | |
|---|---|---|
| Gross margin | - | - |
| Operating margin | - | - |
| Return on equity | 17.1% | 2.5% |
Which hands more back to owners?
→Both pay: Goldman Sachs yields the more at 1.7% against 1.3%. A yield rises when a price falls, so read it beside the payout checks in each report.
| GS | SCHW | |
|---|---|---|
| Dividend yield | 1.7% | 1.3% |
| Payout ratio | 25.2% | 185.9% |
| Years of unbroken dividend | - | - |
Where they differ most
the checks behind the gapHealth: Charles Schwab 2 ahead
- Debt isn't dominating 0.73 vs 1.00
- Converts sales to cash better than its sector 43.9% vs 35.3% (sector 70th pct, n=76)
- Self-funding TTM free cash flow $10.8B
- Leverage is under control 0.94 vs 0.60
- Less levered than its peers 0.94 vs 0.10 (sector 30th pct, n=107)
- Debt trending the right way liabilities are 94.2% of assets vs 92.5% five years ago
Value: Goldman Sachs 1 ahead
- Earnings yield beats a long bond (4%) 6.4% vs 4.0%
- Price isn't outrunning growth PEG 0.79
- Earnings yield beats a long bond (4%) 0.6% vs 4.0%
- Price isn't outrunning growth PEG 17.40