Instant View: Goldman posts 72 percent drop in Q1 earnings

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc posted a 72 percent drop in first-quarter profit as it made less money from trading bonds for clients. The largest U.S. investment bank posted a profit to common shareholders of $908 million, or $1.56 per share, compared with $3.3 billion, or $5.59 per share, in the same quarter a year ago.

Following is a selection of initial comments by analysts:

JOERG RAHN, CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER , MARCARD, STEIN & CO, HAMBURG

"These are good results. Yes, expectations weren't gigantic but they were beat nevertheless. As an investment bank, Goldman is a good indicator for the global M&A and IPO markets so overall this is encouraging going forward."

MATT MCCORMICK, PORTFOLIO MANAGER, BAHL & GAYNOR INVESTMENT COUNSEL, CINCINATTI

"It looks like Goldman had a good beat. It puts them up in the category of JPMorgan Chase. My guess is they'll be rewarded for it today as the market looks for a bit of a snapback for financials." The decline in fixed-income trading revenue was "a little bit higher than I expected, because I expected Goldman Sachs to be the best in class on that issue, but all their other peers seem to be facing the same challenges. I don't think the market will focus on that."

(Reporting by Christoph Steitz and Maria Aspan)