Goldman Sachs shares could rally 25 percent: Barron's

Goldman Sachs Group Inc shares could rise at least 25 percent in the next year as capital markets improve, Barron's said on Sunday.

Wall Street's largest pure investment bank and institutional broker has a leadership position in most of its activities and is financially sturdier and less burdened by competition than it was five years ago, the financial weekly said.

The weekly also cited Goldman's ability to continue growing its book value and the fact that it is better capitalized than most large peers.

Barron's assessment also takes into account the likely outlook for capital-markets activity, it said.

(Reporting by Martinne Geller in New York; Editing by Dale Hudson)