Goldman vs. Evercore: Which Investment Banking Stock to Bet On?

By Riya Anand | September 29, 2025, 10:55 AM

With the investment banking (IB) industry witnessing a rebound, two names are drawing increasing investor attention — Evercore Inc. EVR and The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS, which offer services, such as mergers and acquisitions (M&A) advisory, capital markets, and wealth management. While Goldman is a financial giant with a broad range of services, Evercore specializes in independent advisory services.

The Year 2025 began on an optimistic note, fueled by expectations of a business-friendly Trump administration and potential deregulation. However, the proposed tariffs resulted in market volatility and heightened concerns about a potential economic slowdown and inflationary pressures. Nonetheless, since then the situation has reversed to some extent and deal-making activities look promising, driven by greater clarity on taxes, tariffs, deregulation, pent-up demand and corporates’ pursuit of greater scale and competitiveness.

Amid this backdrop, a key question emerges: which IB stock among Goldman and Evercore presents the more compelling upside potential?

The Case for GS

In global banking and markets, Goldman maintains its long-standing leadership position in announced and completed M&A. Its IB revenues jumped 24% year-over-year to $7.73 billion in 2024. The uptrend continued in the first half of 2025.

At the Barclays 23rd Annual Global Financial Services Conference in early September, Goldman’s CEO David Solomon stated that the company logged strong activity across IPOs and M&As as of late, thanks in part to a friendlier regulatory environment under the pro-growth Trump administration. With rising M&As and IPO pipelines, the company’s decent IB backlog and leadership position will continue to support its performance.

Additionally, Goldman’s streamlining effort has been underway for some time as it retreats from the underperforming, non-core consumer banking ventures and sharpens its focus on core businesses, including asset management, which is being viewed as a more stable revenue source.

GS is reportedly exploring acquisitions to expand its AWM footprint. Additionally, at the above-mentioned conference, the company stated that the division’s business is expected to grow in the high-single-digit range, contributing to a higher overall return for the firm.

The Case of EVR

Evercore, though small in size, has established itself as a significant player in the IB space. The company generates most of its revenues from the Investment Banking and Equities business (which constituted 94% of total revenues as of June 30, 2025). The Investment Banking and Equities business witnessed a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.6% from 2017 to 2024, with a rising trend continuing in the first half of 2025.

The company is strengthening its IB business footprint by actively increasing staff. As of March 31, 2025, the company employed 197 and 184 total Investment Banking & Equities senior managing directors, respectively.

Going forward, the company’s efforts to boost its client base in advisory solutions, diversify revenue sources and expand geographically will support IB revenue growth.

GS & EVR: Price Performance, Valuation & Other Comparisons

Over the past six months, shares of Goldman and Evercore jumped 46.7% and 72%, respectively, compared with the industry’s growth of 31.8%. So, in terms of investors' confidence in the stock, EVR has the edge.

Price Performance