• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

2

As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch

3

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster

1

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

2

As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch

3

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
FinanceWall Street

Can Goldman Sachs Tweet its earnings in 140 characters or less?

By
Stephen Gandel
Stephen Gandel
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Stephen Gandel
Stephen Gandel
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 8, 2015, 1:46 PM ET
<h1>Best IPO</h1>
<strong>Twitter</strong>

Last year <a href="http://money.cnn.com/quote/quote.html?symb=TWTR&amp;source=story_quote_link" title="">Twitter</a> paid close attention to <a href="http://money.cnn.com/quote/quote.html?symb=FB&amp;source=story_quote_link" title="">Facebook's</a> troubled IPO and decided to pull a George Costanza: It did everything differently. NYSE over Nasdaq; <a href="http://money.cnn.com/quote/quote.html?symb=GS&amp;source=story_quote_link" title="">Goldman Sachs</a> instead of <a href="http://money.cnn.com/quote/quote.html?symb=MS&amp;source=story_quote_link" title="">Morgan Stanley</a>; the company didn't try to squeeze out every last dollar or let insiders sell; its execs even showed up in Manhattan to ring the opening bell. The result was $1.8 billion in proceeds and a 73% pop on the first day of trading, which went off without a hitch. After years of hearing "Yeah, but how will it make money?" Wall Street emphatically signaled its belief in future revenue growth (plus maybe profitability) for the first large consumer Internet company that can legitimately claim to have been "mobile first." 

<em>--Dan Primack</em>
<h1>Best IPO</h1> <strong>Twitter</strong> Last year <a href="http://money.cnn.com/quote/quote.html?symb=TWTR&amp;source=story_quote_link" title="">Twitter</a> paid close attention to <a href="http://money.cnn.com/quote/quote.html?symb=FB&amp;source=story_quote_link" title="">Facebook's</a> troubled IPO and decided to pull a George Costanza: It did everything differently. NYSE over Nasdaq; <a href="http://money.cnn.com/quote/quote.html?symb=GS&amp;source=story_quote_link" title="">Goldman Sachs</a> instead of <a href="http://money.cnn.com/quote/quote.html?symb=MS&amp;source=story_quote_link" title="">Morgan Stanley</a>; the company didn't try to squeeze out every last dollar or let insiders sell; its execs even showed up in Manhattan to ring the opening bell. The result was $1.8 billion in proceeds and a 73% pop on the first day of trading, which went off without a hitch. After years of hearing "Yeah, but how will it make money?" Wall Street emphatically signaled its belief in future revenue growth (plus maybe profitability) for the first large consumer Internet company that can legitimately claim to have been "mobile first." <em>--Dan Primack</em>
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Goldman Sachs has decided its earnings are something to tweet about.

Next week, when the bank releases its third quarter earnings, Goldman (GS) said it won’t do it via Business Wire, the press release service it has long used. Instead, it will use a combination of social media and its own website. The announcement will come via Twitter with a link back to a press release on its own site.

The switch makes sense for Goldman. Tweeting its news and putting it up on its own website should avoid the glitches associated with having a middle man. And Business Wire has proved to be leak prone. Last year, the company had to stop selling a service that offered direct access to high frequency traders after it was highlighted as unfair. In August, the SEC charged a number of traders who got early word on a number of deals via hacks into news services, like Business Wire.

It’s also good news for Twitter, which is still figuring out how to make money. If companies think Twitter is a better place to announce their earnings then, as Matt Levine points out, that should be something that Twitter could charge for. If Business Wire can charge for that service, why can’t Twitter?

Then again, Goldman may be using Twitter because it’s free. Also figuring out what Goldman should be charged to tweet and when it can use the social network service for free might get a little dicey, but it nonetheless is another vote that Twitter has value.

But when it comes to earnings, Goldman and others should be careful what it tweets. Earnings releases are monitored by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Companies are allowed to report earnings as they like, and more and more companies do. But if they decided to use a non-standard way to report profits—say, exclude the cost of stock options, or one-time expenses, which more and more companies are doing—they are required to also disclose earnings figures that comply with standard accounting rules. That’s easy to do in a long press release, but might be harder to do in 140 characters.

 

It’s not clear if the SEC has given Goldman or others guidelines on how to report their earnings on Twitter. The SEC did not return a request for comment. But the fact that Goldman is still putting out a press release should mitigate some of the disclosure issues. And investors will eventually dig through the number.

Still, in the age of high frequency trading, how the bank words its tweet will likely move the stock, and possibly set the tone for how the market reacts to its earnings report. And Goldman might be tempted to gussy up its earnings this quarter. Analysts expect that profits in the third quarter will be down 3% from a year ago, and down 20% from the prior three months. Note to Goldman’s Twitter manager: you might want to focus on the former.

About the Author
By Stephen Gandel
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

Mark Zandi, Moody's chief economist.
EconomyU.S. economy
‘It’s fair to ask whether it was worth it’: The Iran war has cost Americans $1,000 per household—and that’s a conservative estimate, Mark Zandi says
By Tristan BoveJuly 1, 2026
4 hours ago
Melania Trump NFT earnings surge 28x in 2025 as first lady rakes in nearly $17 million in total earnings, filing shows
PoliticsDonald Trump
Melania Trump NFT earnings surge 28x in 2025 as first lady rakes in nearly $17 million in total earnings, filing shows
By Mia OsmonbekovJuly 1, 2026
4 hours ago
Donald Trump sits at his desk in the Oval Office, smiling and with his hands folded in front of him.
PoliticsDonald Trump
Trump got a $78K pension from the Screen Actors Guild in 2025 because he appeared in Home Alone 2 in 1992
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 1, 2026
5 hours ago
Current price of Bitcoin for July 1, 2026
Personal FinanceCryptocurrency
Current price of Bitcoin for July 1, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 1, 2026
9 hours ago
Current price of Ethereum for July 1, 2026
Personal FinanceEthereum
Current price of Ethereum for July 1, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 1, 2026
9 hours ago
Top CD rates from major banks July 1, 2026: Chase CDs, Bank of America CDs, Citibank CDs, and more
Personal FinanceCertificates of Deposit (CDs)
Top CD rates from major banks on July 1, 2026: Chase CDs, Bank of America CDs, Citibank CDs, and more
By Joseph HostetlerJuly 1, 2026
9 hours ago

Most Popular

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
Success
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
By Sydney LakeJune 25, 2026
7 days ago
As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch
Big Tech
As Big Tech showers employees with perks to win the talent war, Nvidia built a nearly $5 trillion company by making people pay for their own lunch
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJuly 1, 2026
15 hours ago
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
Success
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
By Preston ForeJune 27, 2026
4 days ago
The Supreme Court's birthright citizenship ruling hands the U.S. economy a $7.7 trillion win
Newsletters
The Supreme Court's birthright citizenship ruling hands the U.S. economy a $7.7 trillion win
By Diane BradyJuly 1, 2026
13 hours ago
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
Success
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
By Sydney LakeJune 29, 2026
2 days ago
The U.S. Army is opening military bases to private billions — here's why that changes everything for the next 250 years
Commentary
The U.S. Army is opening military bases to private billions — here's why that changes everything for the next 250 years
By Marc AndersenJune 30, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.