Goldman Sachs Group Inc plans to dismiss a few hundred employees in the coming weeks as part of the firm’s annual cull of low-performing staff, according to people familiar with the matter.

The fresh round of firings would bring total cuts in 2024 to about 3% to 4% of the bank’s workforce, with most of those reductions made earlier this year, one of the people said, asking not to be named discussing internal moves.

That’s in line with the bank’s typical approach, as it seeks to keep a lid on costs and make room to enlist new talent. The annual exercise was briefly suspended in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, and was near the lower end of its typical 1% to 5% range last year.

Goldman employed 44,300 people at midyear. A company spokesperson said the bank’s annual review of staff is normal and standard, and that the company plans to have more employees at the end of 2024 than a year earlier.

The bank’s stock climbed to an all-time high this week, rising more than 32% to surpass US$510 by Friday’s close of trading - making it the best performer among the top US banks. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier in the day that Goldman is carrying out its annual cull.

  - Bloomberg